Prelude to Madness
by Profilerreid
Summary: When a deadly virus is released in New York the BAU is called in to help find the UNSUB and Cure. But when Krys Robin, a quirky technical analyst, is threatened by the virus Reid puts himself in harms way to save her.
1. Strange Reality

**Authors Note: **This is not totally my fanfic It is passed off of an role play on a rp site. There are a lot of new characters added that are not from the show, and most of them I have no created, only Kate is mine. The rest are made by other, who I have asked and gotten permission to use in my story. I am also using dialogue and actions straight from their rp posts that I did not write.

Also because of school and the process I use to create this fic in which I need to pull from things already written it takes a long time to write a chapter, so please be patent with me. Please enjoy.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Criminal Minds, nor some of the other characters in this story.

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Chapter 1

Strange Reality

"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." said Maya Angelou

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The college class room was filled to the rim =with people. All of them there to see the FBI. Some aspired to be agents, other just thought it would be cool to see what they actually looked like. But far their thought of what the agents would be like was totally off what they had thought for the two presenters were some of the weaker and more nerdy aspects of the bureau. SSA Dr Spencer Reid and technical analyst Krys Robin.

Krys never seemed to have a moment to herself, Counter Terrorism made sure of that. When she wasn't working on computer stuff for them they also had her visiting colleges with other members from various FBI agencies doing little speeches which Krys hated. She could barely talk to people (as they seemed to be afraid of her personality) let alone an entire college again, she always kept the classes entertained proving to be one of the more expressive and exuberant lecturers. She often resorted to darting back and forth, gesturing with her hands, and using language that the 'kids' could actually appreciate and enjoy without getting bored out of their minds. It also didn't hurt that she was ridiculously intelligent when it came to her line of work: Mainly computers.

Like wise Reid always hated having to go to schools and talk about the wonderful program of the FBI. He hated talking in front of a punch of cops, so why would be feel better talking to a punch of college students. Students that were quick to make judgments on people and then make fun of them behind their backs. It was high school and college all over again! Reid couldn't imagine that he was doing any good to recruiting kids to the FBI. They now, most likely, thought the FBI was full of nerdy dorks like him. People kept telling him it was because he was closer to their age, but never in his life he had never been close to anyone his age. Not with the age he got through school. If anything he related to forty year olds much better then twenty year olds like himself.

Finally the long day ended and the students were leaving the classroom to go god knows where. Krys hung back a bit, try to avoid the large crowd of students, walking along the side of the wall before she stopped to watch people pass. God, some of these kids were around her age, why couldn't she at least say hi? Oh yeah, because though she was talkative and loved people they never seemed to like her (unless she worked with them).

Egger to get out of there after a long day of humiliating himself Spencer was ready to get out of there as fast as he could. However he was stuck pack up his various things as the other presenter awkwardly moved to the pack of the room before slipping out into the hallway.

Once in the hall Krys knelt down to tie her converse sneaker. The old, worn barely white laces slipping through her fingers as she made the knot, caught up in her own mind for a moment as she stood in the hallway until she heard the murmur of voices and a laugh. Blinking with confusion she dared to look up from where she was kneeling just in time to see two students (obviously not from the class where she had given a lecture because she would have remembered them), pointing and snickering, obviously about her. Of course she had no idea exactly why, though she knew all of the options. She wasn't a stereotypical girly girl and she didn't wear designer clothes, she was short and kind of pale, and she just looked like an oddball. No doubt with her visitors pass pinned on her shirt she looked like a complete her eyes as the two troublemakers passed she abruptly reached up and snagged the ID right off of her person before scrunching it in her fist and shoving it into her jeans pocket. Day by day she was learning what society dubbed as 'cool' and what made her look like an even bigger loser... If that was even possible.

Even more frustrated then before Reid exited the classroom only to see Krys, being harassed by some kids. Suddenly the agent instinct in him was awoken and he half ran to the scene. "Hey, leave her alone!" He ordered, even though it only prompted more laugher from the kids. It never stopped to amaze Reid how rude college kids could be. Maybe they would be more respectful if they had known they were FBI agents.

In hearing this yell Krys looked up from where she was still kneeling. Her right hand was still in her jeans pocket where she was currently stuffing her ID and it seemed to freeze there a minute as she watched a fellow presenter try to play hero. Then again, this man didn't look all that heroic. He had semi-long hair and was rather skinny, Krys was fairly certain if any of the young men attempted to push him he'd topple right over. Still, the effort on his part was brave and valiant and she took note of that.

She thought back about thirty minutes and slightly recalled his presentation and seemed even more awkward than she had. While she was more exuberant he seemed fairly unhappy to be there, had attempted to tell a particularly awful science joke, and then just rattled of facts. Thirty minutes ago Krys had almost felt bad for him but now, just half an hour later, she was actually course the young men just laughed, and Krys found herself shooting a warning glare as she rose to her feet, hands on her hips, trying her damnedest to be intimidating. This only prompted further laughter and a few 'oos' before they finally walked off, gossiping and chuckling the whole way. It wasn't until they were out of sight down the hallway that she turned to look at Spencer.

Reid could blame the students from laugh as Krys tried to be big a brave, she was so small and innocent looking with her brown hair and chocolate eyes. He wasn't sure if anyone could be afraid of her, but than again she could be like Garcia; looks nice and helpless but you never want to cross paths with her. That seemed to be the case for most computer "nerds".

Reid thought back to her presentation, something easily done, and remember that she was in counter terrorism normally stationed in New York by moved from city to city as needed, working with computers. That was about the jest of what she said about her job. The rest was odd comments and phrases in a language Reid couldn't quite understand.

"Thanks." She offered in a quiet voice, feeling somewhat embarrassed that it had to come to the point that it had. But, like many emotions with Krys, it was fleeting. "For helping." She added on, shifting a bit where she stood wondering if he felt as out of place as she did. His exterior led her to believe that he did, he looked more nerdy than she did, but the way he had run to help her led her to believe that he was actually a brave soul, more so than she. He also, in his speech, mentioned fieldwork which meant he went head to head with criminals, Krys did it solely by phone and computer, therefore this young man bested her ten-fold.

"Your welcome..." Reid muttered, not even sure if he had spoken loud enough to be heard. He wondered if his actions had been taken the wrong way. What if she thought he was trying to be a macho man, even though he could never look like one.

Seeing the expression on Spencer's face still looking in the direction where the young students had walked off she gave a little smile and a soft laugh, trying to make the best of it. Did he think he had failed? Can't have that. "I mean, think on it this way, they're laughing but they're also walking away... Which means you won. Right?" She wasn't sure if that logic made any sense at all, but it did to her so she said it anyways. Who knows, maybe this would be the one time someone actually understood.

"They could be walking away because they don't think we're worth it. Meaning that they win...." he said not really thinking about how cynical he sounded. "Anyway they still can make fun of me, so what did I win?" All in all her logic did make sense, but some how Reid's haunted past wouldn't let him admit that he might have won. You never win when it comes to bullies. Not even when you tell a teacher and get them expelled. That only causes more problems in the end.

Krys' brow rose in question mixed in with a little smile. "You're not a very positive kind of guy, are you?" Of course the question was rhetorical even though she was very interested as to the nature of this Spencer Reid. It wasn't every day someone tried to play hero, or that she met someone around her own age that didn't seem totally disgusted by her existence. Then again, he didn't seem very happy about her either but Krys couldn't tell. There was a reason she dealt with computers most of the time and not with a bit awkward now, Reid looked down at Krys. "Are you okay?" He asked sheepishly not knowing what to say after that comment. He really didn't want to strike up a conversation, but be knew that he couldn't just walk away at that point."Yeah." She gave a bit of a nod pushing a few strands of light brown hair that her hair-tie couldn't contain behind her ear. "Emotionally, physically, mentally at a hundred percent. Can't ask for anything more." There was that odd sense of humor again. One that Reid did quite understand. She gave him a half smile but it was entirely genuine and had that quirky little quality that only Krys could possess. She was on oddball, but at least she was a genuine one.

"Thank you very much..." Her eyes squinted a bit as she leaned forward to look at his ID tag that he was still wearing. "Agent Reid." Going back on the balls of her feet her brown eyes suddenly widened with recollection. "Hey, I know that name." Krys' mind worked much like a computer, like her life, and already she was pumping out the various matches and results. "Spencer Reid right?" She blinked excitedly before she was able to process that she probably sounded like a weirdo and was quick to cover for herself."Don't worry, I'm not a creeper or anything. I met a coworker of yours the other day... Garcia." Now she looked down and realized that she was doing what she always did and was increasingly stepping closer to him so they were almost toe to toe. By this time Reid was nearly toppled backward trying to keep his bubble. It wasn't anything personal, he just never liked to be touched by others, especially ones that showed a few signs of mental illness.

This always seemed to happened when she was wrapped up in telling a story or when she met knew people, so warily she took a simple step back so to give him his personal space. Trying not to seem to bothered by her Reid took the chance to move a little closer to the wall and away from her."Am I right or totally wrong? Because if that's the case you're probably regretting sticking up for me earlier, which is still appreciated because that was pretty awesome back there.." She was rambling again and she knew it, a bit of a nervous laugh she subconsciously decided to no longer chug AMP Energy drink during her lectures.

Leaning against the wall he finally answer. "Yeah, I work with Garcia." He said. There seemed to be something about the way that Reid looked, that made it still seem like he wasn't to happy about the way that things had past. He felt like Krys was trying to hard to keep him from thinking of the failure.

He knew that he wasn't all that positive. But when you work in his field and had a childhood like his it wasn't that easy. When you are faced with death of the innocent every day it is hard to think that there can be much more to life than the bad. Yet some how Spencer was always able to pull himself from the abyss and smile on. Hiding any pain that he still felt. Even if it didn't seem like it now Reid was pretty good at hiding what he really felt, at least when it mattered. Working with a group of profilers did that to you, after all if you ever want to have an secrets you have to be able to keep the deep down bellow the surface when one wrong movement could bring them all into the open.

Krys couldn't help but notice his sadness. In a second her brain was already moving a mile a minute, the wheels were turning trying to figure out a way to make it better. Immediately she bent down to reach into her messenger bag. After a moment or two of digging she fished out the top of her laptop bag which was practically covered in pins, barcode stickers, and really anything else from everywhere that she had her right hand she carefully ripped off a very small star sticker, like the kind little kids received for doing a good job on their spelling exams. Moving back to stand on her converse clad feet she reached right out toward Spencer, though not in a threatening or quick manner so not to frighten him, and gently pressed the blue star on the bottom end of his ID (and Spencer was nearly up against the wall so it wasn't exactly like he could run off).

"There." She announced with a bit of a smile, finally taking a step back when she realized he was trying to get away from her. Was she really so desperate to talk to someone that she would stop at no costs? Suddenly she felt pretty guilty, but hid it fairly well giving a half hearted, quiet little laugh accompanied by a shrug of the shoulders.

Reid blushed. It was grade school all over again. The only thing he could really think of was that he already got made fun of enough by his looks, and now he had a little blue sticker to add to that. Yet he knew that he wasn't going to be able to pull the sticker off, that would be like betraying her, and he couldn't do that. "Thank you." He mumbled under his breath and tried to smile a little. "It's very nice."

Once again Krys' brow quirked, pretty comedicly, as if she had noticed something in an I-SPY book that every other person had missed. "You're not a very good liar Agent Reid. I see that's one of the BA's you managed to not get." She was only teasing, which Reid knew, there was nothing offensive or defensive in her tone. Krys could just be blunt at times and she rarely ever took anything personally.

This could be because when she was little, when she was hit, she always blamed herself. Every single night she'd sit on the roof of her porch taking in the air, her arms wrapped around her legs as she cried, and she constantly blamed herself. Then one day, when she was around thirteen, completely out of the blue that changed (or at least she made herself believe that). Not everything in the world could be her fault because occasionally, she did very good deeds, and God couldn't possibly be vindictive enough to harm someone who tried to do good. How someone who had been through what she had believed in some sort of higher power was beyond some intelligent folk's comprehension, then again Krys Robin was not a person easily understood.

"Don't worry. You can peel it off once you get around that corner." She said after an awkward pause. She pointed with her right arm before shoving her hands into her pockets to keep herself from doing anymore damage. "I'll never know." She added as an afterthought, still trying to get a smile from the young man who seemed defiant and probably just wanted to escape.

"Your speech was..." She tried to change the subject. But upon further inspection of Spencer's posturing she cut herself short. She may have not been a profiler for a living but obvious body language wasn't something that totally escaped her comprehension. And so, she quieted down, swallowing her words and looking momentarily to the floor before briskly looking right back up apologetically. "I should let you go, huh?" It was another one of those rhetoricals and she suddenly felt so stupid for even trying. She gave off a quiet little laugh, trying to laugh it off but the weight felt heavy on her 5'3 frame.

Reid suddenly felt bad. He had been so mean to her for no reason. Anyway she was just a little women, nothing to be afraid of. He might as well talk to her a little longer. At least until she actually wanted to go. Spencer didn't know what to do, though. He had never been that good at small talk. So he just stood there watching her as she started to turn to go trying to figure something to say to make her as Krys tried to leave she found her feet glued to the spot. So she turned back around. "I really do appreciate you..." Her voice trailed off as she tried to form the words. "You know.. Back there.." She put up her fists in a mock fight position so to do the talking that her lips could not. Now swallowing that down she turned to leave again, only to turn back around with a quickness as though she had forgotten something. "My name's Krys by the way. Krys Robin." A hint of a smile. "Like the storybook but different."

Reid smiled, a true smile this time, because he knew her name. He remembered it from her speech. "You know..." He said shyly, "I don't know... I mean about your name and the storybook?" It was odd to him that he could remember any and everything and yet he didn't know about children's books. There were about the only thing he didn't read. By the time most kids were reading those he was reading Shakespeare.

In seeing Spencer actually smile Krys straightened a bit in posture, her own version of a relieved smile crossing over her features. "Krys Robin." She stepped back toward him, but this time doing her best not to invade his personal space. "Like Winnie the Pooh?... You've never heard of Winnie the Pooh?" Reid shock his head no.

Her brown eyes widened slightly with disbelief and another smile, actually amused by this. "Big yellow bear with a red shirt. No pants. Carries around a honey pot everywhere he goes..." Her hands had slipped out of her pockets and had begun to gesture, a habit she had, along with being very expressive. "It was my mom's favorite children's book. My um... Parents wanted a boy and they had the name all picked out. Christopher Robin. Pooh's best friend... But then they got me." Her words hung in the air for a moment. She was trying not to think about the horrible memories of her childhood. It was a sad day when the only happy thing you had to share about your past was how you got your ridiculous name. "So I'm Krys Robin."She reached into her pocket, retrieving her ID and holding it out so he could see the different spelling. She had done this on instinct and soon realized this after her arm had been sticking out for a few long moments. "Kind of a boring story, huh?" And she moved to tuck the ID back into her pants pocket.

At Krys' words Reid became sad. Suddenly he understood so much more of Krys then she probably wanted him to know. With the few words she choose he knew that because her parents had wanted a boy, but ended up with a girl they never treated her with the carry she needed. With sad eyes he half smiled and said, "Its a good story. Not everyone knows why they have the name they do..." He thought he his own name then. A few times he had wanted to ask his mom why she named him Spencer, but even when she was in a lucid state of mind she could never get her story straight.

Out of things to say again Reid went to something he knew a lot about, Facts. "Did you know that the honey bear, or the sun bear doesn't really eat honey? At times he might eat a nest of bees but most of a bees hive is beeswax and Propolis. Then then there is a large number of eggs and larvae, leaving only a small amount of honey, much of which probably isn't even fully made yet. Bears in captivity have been known to eat honey, though." Reid knew that he was rambling on about something she didn't need, or even want, to know. He used his knowledge, though, as a shield, trying to hid the fact that he didn't know who this Winnie the Pooh character was.

Krys smiled a tiny bit, obviously amused by this bit of trivia, and furthermore, that she could actually contribute to it. "Aren't the black with white diamonds on their back?" She found herself blurting right out without even thinking, which was a character flaw and strength that she possessed. When she thought of something she had to say it, which is why she could never be a cop or be trusted with a weapon. She often acted on passion, on instinct, and some people who knew her loved her like the expression on Spencer's face of disbelief she suddenly swallowed, shrugging her shoulders sheepishly. "I used to watch Discovery Channel when I was a kid." That is, at midnight if it was raining when her abusive father was asleep, passed out in a drunken daze. All of their biological children fast asleep so they couldn't tattle on her and get her into more trouble.

Though she knew she should have stayed quiet, her old impulsiveness would not allow a random fact to slip by. "Did you know that bears in zoos get fed popsicles? I'm not kidding." Her cheeks turned red in color from the excitement of being able to talk without being glared at, pushed down, or thought as totally weird and unworthy of recognition. "You can put fish and berries into this BIG bucket of water, then they freeze it, and then they dump it into the enclosures. Instant popsicle!" Looking up she blinked and shifted a bit on her converse clad feet. "Well not instant, it takes overnight, just like any other popsicle..." Her voice trailed off in a murmur. Why did she always have to ramble on when really no one ever cared about what meaningless facts she had memorized, or what she had to say. It was pointless. She should have known better by now.

"Winnie the Pooh sticks to honey pots though..." She added as an afterthought, quite aware of the fact that she was jumping from topic to topic and this young man was probably sick of it. "He was also yellow... and a stuffed animal."

There was a short pause before he added. "You don't have to go... we could go and get something to eat... its around diner time after all." He paused another moment before adding. "That is if you want to..."

This comment caused her to halt the answer she was about to utter. Was he asking her because he felt bad? She didn't want that So instead, she adjusted her answer just a little bit."I already ate actually." She found herself speaking up, which was a major lie but she didn't want anyone to hang around her just because they felt bad. She could take care of herself. Reid's eyes fell to the floor, oddly saddened by her answer. "You know, for an intelligent guy you're pretty indecisive Spencer Reid." She teased with a little smile all her own. Then again, thinking on it, when this young man had smiled she did rather enjoy it... "But... I do know somewhere we can go.. If you're up to it."Arms crossed over her chest now and she once again tilted her head at him. "Ever been to an arcade?" Now her head tilted to the other side, a hint of a little smirk brewing. "Multiple BA owners like yourself DO have fun, don't they?" She wasn't being too forceful about the idea, but she did secretly hope he would join her. The thought of this scholar playing videogames was promising to be pretty entertaining. "You know.. Videogames. Loud, obnoxious kids...Nachos and cheese... Pretzels.. Probably god awful for you but still it's relatively comforting."

An arcade! Reid's eyes widened and he looked around uncomfortably. "Um.. Well..." Spencer mumbled. Spencer's look of panic only seemed to fuel her more because by now she was practically radiating. "Aw come on! It's just down the street. You don't even have to waste the gas money.. I have quarters." She encouraged, resisting all urge to just yank him away from the hallway wall and throw him out the window toward the location in her excitement.

"I mean I really never have got to one... and well..." He knew that he was just being a stick in the mud now. There was no good reason why he couldn't go. He was just afraid to do something new. Something that he connected with his childhood. He had always wanted to go and play games, but he was always to busy taking care of his mother or staying away from other people, to do it.

"You've never been to an arcade?" Her voice was lathered with disbelief and her brown eyes even widened. "Well now you don't have a choice, you definitely have to go. How have you never been to an arcade?" She laughed, finding joy in this (though not in a cruel way). Truth be told she was just excited to have a PacMan partner.

Some of the games did look fun and it might be nice to finally get to do it. To relive some of his childhood in a happier manner. "Well... I guess I could... For a little while at least..." He muttered starting to regret it already.

"Awesome!" Yeah, Krys was hip with the cool kid lingo... From the seventies. Without thinking she boldly reached out to take Spencer's hand but stopped herself short. Catching her mistake, treating him like she had known him for ages, she slowly retracted back giving an apologetic look. "Well.. Come on!" And with that she was on her way. Spencer was frozen in his spot for a moment, a little dumbfound by what just happened. A couple moments later he found himself chasing after the odd woman who only minutes before he had thought was completely insane.


	2. The Moment

**Authors Note: **Sorry it took me SO long to get this chapter up. My sister ended up needing to have an emergency C-section so I've been in the hospital with her and my niece. Both are fine, but the baby still needs to be under doctor supervision. Hope you enjoy. Please Read and Review.

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**Chapter 2**

The Moment

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Down the steps of the University Krys soared before racing outside, holding the door open for Spencer and a few others before she hurried down the sidewalk, clutching the strap of her messenger bag. A little ways down the street was the arcade.

Krys pushed her entire body weight against the door and immediately the darkness and smell of greasy food overtook the scene. Flashing lights, the sound of arcade games dinging, tickets being printed, and the occasional clink-clank of the change machine. Krys took it all in with a wide smile before turning around to boldly address the young man behind her.

"In here... I'm KING." She declared with a playful waggle of the eyebrows and a more comedic gesture of her hands on her hips like some sort of Superman knock off. While Krys wasn't always the best with people she was excellent with technology.. And points.

The sudden clinking of coins and machines made Reid think of a casino. The screams of kids made him think of school. The smell of the place seemed unhealthy. He smiled at Krys hiding his discomfort perfectly. "So should I call you Krys or the KING?" He laughed at his horrible attempt to make a joke. He looked around the small place and figured that it was probably to late to get out of it.

"King Krys." The data analyst quipped with a proud little smile, hands still on her hips though her posture relaxed a little bit. She had been inside an arcade multiple times before, though this was only the second time she had been to this one in her various visits to the college in the area.

As a child she would skip lunch (not that the coins her father gave her was enough to buy lunch anyways) and she would save all week so she could go to the arcade every Friday and play for a good hour. The clinking of coins she was hearing now along with the cheers of excited beings of various ages was home to her. In a way it was the only home that she knew. It wasn't like she had a stable home now 's when she noticed something. As she looked at Spencer Reid she gave a genuine half smirk as if she had spotted a mistake that no one else in the 'class' had. "You're smiling Spencer Reid." She declared in a soft, yet knowing voice amidst the clanging of coin machines. But this sense of semi-pride and contentment was short lived for she immediately turned toward the closest game that was available.

Reid looked like a kid found with his hand in the cookie jar for a moment when Krys declared that he was smiling. Then he realized that there was no reason to be ashamed of being happy. In the back of his mind he wondered what Morgan would say about Reid being in an arcade. Then he realized why he was drawn so much to Krys. She was a female, more hyper, version of Morgan. Maybe not as brave and heroic as he was, but the same basic personality. Reid considered him his brother. Maybe Krys could be some sort of sister. After all it seemed like she needed friends.

Krys' eyes lit up at the site of a game a few feet in front of her. She was so exited that she didn't even see the stunned face of Spencer. Before he even had a chance to defend himself for smiling she was already on the next subject.

"Do you like Centipede?" She asked over her shoulder as she thrust her right hand into her messenger bag, rummaging for the spare quarters she often saved out of old habit. "Not the bug I mean, the game." She added for good measure before bending down to insert one coin. Glancing over her shoulder fully now she smiled, brushing a few stray whisps of brown hair behind her ear. "An oldie but a goodie. It's really simple. Honest."

"Centipede?" Reid repeated taking a step closer to the game. "Yeah... I know it. Made in 1980 by Atari. Designed by Ed Logg and Dona Bailey, one of the only female game programmers in the industry at the time." He said though he had never really played the game before.

Krys blinked, obviously impressed by this man's rattling off of facts. It was impressive, that much couldn't be denied. Stopping her attempt to 'set up' the game (mainly by pressing start) she slowly turned around to face in him in a momentary pause. "So you know all about it... You've just never played it..." Of course she was only teasing, and even then it was in a tone that she was amused by this and wished to encourage it further.

"You're a Snapple cap of knowledge, Spence." She turned her attention back to the game as though this sort of conversation was completely natural for them, even though they had just met. Krys was a socially comfortable person which probably scared a lot of people off, meaning once you spoke to her she treated you like she had known you for ages. It was just a positive little habit she always had. Agent Grimaldi always teased her about it. She had even slipped up and called Spencer 'Spence'. No telling how he'd feel about that, but she had done it subconsciously so she didn't even notice and she went about playing the game.

With a grunt she moved to stand again in front of the right side of the machine where the little joystick was. "All you have to do is press this red button to shoot." She nodded toward the button in question before moving the joystick back and forth. Reid's eyes wryly fell to the button like he had never seen one in his life before.

"I'll control where the shooting comes from." Looking over her shoulder again she attempted to reassure him if he had any doubts. "It's not a gun so much as a little box shooting at little balls that are attached. It changes color too, if that's an incentive at all.."

Reaching over she pressed the red button and the machine began to play a little tune of beeps and tones. Her hands drummed rhythmically against the front before she tossed another reassuring smile in the agent's direction. "Well..?"

After a moment of hesitation Spencer joined Krys next to the game and placed his hand on the small red button. A second later he was pressing it and watching the little light come out of the point of the "gun" as it weaved its way across the screen being controlled by "KING". "This is fun..." He said delight clear in his voice. Some how the little game was able to take his brilliant mind of the troubles in the world. Suddenly everything didn't look so evil any more. Maybe he should try and have fun more often.

Krys moved the joystick back and forth. While her movement was methodical as she paid close attention to what Reid was doing, he was just pressing the red button as fast as he could.

"Right! Right! Left! Quick.. It's blue!" Krys half shouted more to herself than Reid.

It was during a quick sidelong glance that she smirked a bit and shook her head. He was pressing the button rather exuberantly for someone who seemed startled by the idea of videogames. With a bit of a proud smile Krys turned her attention back on the game where the centipede was changing to it's ninth different color meaning they were on a higher level.

"Okay. Time for the ole switcheroo." Before Reid was even able to react to the words Krys was already putting her plan into action.

In a scrambling of movement she practically limbo-ed under his arm (he was quite a bit taller than she was at 5'3) and now she took the place at the red button while he got a chance at maneuvering. Something that he wasn't quite ready for. Her brown eyes glued to the screen she watched the splashes of color, the blinking of lights against the black screen with an eager expression.

There was a moment when the gun didn't move as Reid stared blankly at the screen like it was an alien machine. Then he realize that he had to do something or they would loss. Not as smoothly as when Krys had been controlling it the box moved back and forth across the screen.

Clicking away now Krys bounced back and forth eagerly on her heels. "Did you know that centipedes don't actually have a hundred legs?" From the looks of things she was her own little Snapple Cap of random facts. Another thing Grimaldi teased her about, and often. She was the 'baby' of the team, and as a result got treated like a five year old sometimes. How this was appropriate in the workforce she had no idea, but she actually enjoyed it. Her team was more family than her own family, as sad as that was.

Reid barely heard Krys' words. All the genius mind and energy was focused on the game, which was turning out to be surprisingly difficult for just having to move a gun back and forth across a small screen

It was only when he decided to look over at Krys, like she had him, to see what she was doing the he lost concentration. When he looked back at the game it was to late to recover. The centipede, what was left of it, had reached the lowest quadrant of the screen and made contact with their 'blaster'. The screen flashed and the bold white words read in the center of the blackness: GAME OVER.

"Aw man..." Krys groaned before doing a 180 and looking to her 'teammate'. "Well played." She offered but now the screen was flashing for them to add in their names for the number 4 spot out of 7. 5 out of the seven read 'KRYS'. Reid's eyes widened at the name amazed at how good she actually was.

"Okay, okay, I've played this game a bit in the past week." She admitted, laughing it off before she nodded toward the screen. "You can put your name in. It's like being on the wall of fame only no one knows so you can't be showered with praises."

There was a short pause as Reid wondered if he should actually do what she said, after all she had done most the work in getting them as high as they had. After a moment he deiced that there was no fighting this girl and entered "REID" into the machine. It felt good to see his name on the top scores list. He felt an odd sense of pride knowing that one day someone would see his name up there. Even if, like Krys said, they had no idea who he was. He could imagine someone seeing Krys' name then his and thinking that he must be good at the game.

At the base of the game a long string of tickets had appeared. Krys reached done and grabbed then. After stuffing them into her bag she pulled out a few more coins out of it before looking back up and declaring thoughtfully: "You look like a guy who would like to whack some alligators."

Following Krys off to the Wac-An-Alligator Reid found himself a little confused. "Its it suppose to be Wac-A-Mole?"

"Kind of. But not..." Krys eyed the machine as she pointed out the various plastic parts. "There's no holes, no moles.. And the alligators come through this tunnel." She looked up again at Spencer brightly. "But you do have to hit them on the head, well, snout anyways."

Now turning her attention on a large, wide green game shaped like a swamp labeled 'See Ya Later Alligator' she inserted the coins eagerly before holding the big, plushy mallet out for Spencer. "All you gotta do is hit the gators over the head." Now chewing sounds were coming from the machine and the fake water began to move, and then appeared the alligators. So, Krys demonstrated, with one hand she hit one, then another before looking to Reid. "It's pretty barbaric but awesomely so."

Reid took the mallet only second before the game started. He was taken aback as Krys started to hit the machine with her hands. "Just a little…?" He respond questioningly.

Seeing an alligator pop up but not getting to it in time with the mallet. Slightly frustrated and again wanting to show Krys he could do it, he whacked the next one harder though still missing it, and sent his mallet flying a few feet into the air before it landed on the table in front of him. His checks turned red with embarrassment. "Heads up!" A hint of an amused smile and slight tilt of the head, Krys looked to Spencer with her brow curiously raised. A second later he burst into laughter. "I guess I'm not that good." He said between laughs

Krys was quiet for a moment as she watched him in the midst of the alligators now making hungry growls and crunching sounds. This man was laughing. While he had been so nerve-racked earlier now he was actually laughing. And she wasn't going to let it fade away."Doesn't matter." She concluded simply, her chin raised high. "People always cheat anyways. Come on!" And with that she turned to the machine with a large smile and proceeded to push down on the plastic alligators' snouts with her hands, thus racking up the points. People did this all of the time and though it wasn't in the rules it wasn't like you could get into trouble for it. The rules weren't tacked up anywhere, no one was breathing on their necks, they could invent their own.

If it was any other time Reid would have thought that that was cheating and pointed it out. But then there was no need to be a wet blanket now. He decided to just have fun with it. So he joined in the fun whacking the alligators with the mallet, while at the same time he was making sure that he didn't hit Krys' hands. Reid quickly learned the pattern in which the heads came up, because no matter how random something is there is always a pattern if you watch close enough. With this he actually ended up helping raise their score.

Without the mallet Krys had to apply a bit more force, and quickly, so she would dash to each gator, jump in the air and press on it with both hands, using her full body weight. Even as she did so, she wanted to keep the random facts game alive, even if most of her facts were just gathered from Animal Planet watching.

"Fun fact, in Africa Hippos kill more people than Crocodiles." Another breathless grunt as she rushed to another alligator bopping it right on the snout. "As a kid I wanted a pet Hippo." She shrugged, rushing to another one as the gators were coming faster now. "As a kid I wanted a pet everything. Still do." Another grunt and a push as a gator cried out 'ow' in a comedic low voice. "But I travel too much to have a pet, or much of anything else." It was when she said this that she was incredibly focused on the game so she hadn't even paid attention to what words she had said or the murmured tone she had said them in.

"I wanted a dog." Reid said plainly. He really never wanted any odd animal, knowing that it wasn't possible. It was kind of sad that he never got to imagine what it would be like having a Lion, or something like that, for a pet. Now that he thought about it he missed out on so much. But what was he going to do. There was nothing he could do to change what he was like back then. And he was defiantly not going to become one of those regretful people. When he was a kid he had something no one had, an adult mind, which was why he was where he was know doing what he loved in the world, and he wouldn't trade anything to have it a different way.

Reid smiled as he came up with his own fun fact. "Both crocodiles and alligators have dotted sensory pits along the upper and lower jaws that look almost like beard stubble. They detect slight changes in water pressure, thought to help the animals locate prey." Reid quotes as he hit another alligator on the head.

"So, in a way, they're kind of like me on my computer." She chimed in, pressing another alligator on the head, it's low protests heard over the game's sound system. "My computer gives me a whole new sense that others don't have. I'm pretty much an X-Men.""You're not god awful at this you know." The comment only embarrassed Reid more. He figured that this game had to be the easiest game in the place. But the fact was he was doing pretty good at not missing.

Another alligator, another bop. Another one, this time Krys did a little move with her elbow, facing inward toward Spencer. "Did you know that alligators can sing?" Bop. "Not so much sing as puff out this little bit of skin under their necks and purr, really loud. Imagine if people did that." Her two hands moved outward and hit two separate green alligators over the head.

"Frogs do the same thing. And though most make a loud 'ribit' sound some also purr, like an alligator." Reid said getting another hit.

Just like that the game wound down, the time limit running out, and the game silence itself and yellow tickets began to print and collected, in a line, at their feet. Bending down Krys yanked them out and shoved them into her bag. Straightening back up there really wasn't anything to say. She was willing to bet her going on and telling him 'good game' would make him feel awkward and weird, so, instead, she settled on a rather blank: "I wanted a dog too." Before she gave him a bright sort of expression. "Wait right here." And she hurried off.

When Krys ran off Reid felt a little lonely. He was sure that he looked really out of place standing in the middle of an arcade alone staring into space. He also thought he might look like some sort of pervert or something. Then again he had been told many times that he looked a lot younger then he really was. Even once someone thought he was twelve. It amazed his how he could be 28 and look like a teenager. Maybe that would actually play in his advantage for once in his life. The thought of blending in made his feel better and more relaxed.

It wasn't long before Krys returned with a white and red checkered cardboard container which held nacho chips and melted cheese. "Did you know those 'must' have 300 calories a chip..." He muttered not really sure if she could hear him or not. Luckily she didn't.

She gave a calm smile as she introduced yet another arcade staple disguised as a makeshift fact. "Did you know, though horribly unhealthy, arcade food is delicious?" There was a glint of something in her face but it quickly disappeared as she offered the box to him to take if he wished. Maybe the stickiness of the cheese would be a problem, or the fact that it REALLY looked like a clot waiting to happen, but you had to live a little once in a while.

To make up for his comment he reach over and a little hesitantly grabbed a chip covered in sticky cheese. Then he slowly put it in his mouth causing some of the hot cheese to run down his chin. Quickly he whipped the cheese off with his hand, afraid to be seen as a messy eater or something. Not that Krys would care, he was sure. She was just going to laugh and make a few jokes about all his BAs and not being able to eat. And he was okay with that. She was no more harmful then Morgan was. And he had learned to live with Morgan's teasing years ago. Chewing the food he found it was actually quite good. Unable to speak he held up a thumb and nodded his head a couple of times.

Krys was horribly amazed and amused when Spencer actually gave her a thumbs up. She certainly hadn't been expecting that, not the fact that he enjoyed the nachos (because that was a given) but how he would voice it. She had half expected a very intellectual, soft spoken answer not something as 'hip' as a thumbs up. True thumbs up wasn't exactly hip anymore but it was certainly a step in the right direction and it meant that this Spencer wasn't completely and utterly lost when it came to the great big world. Leave it to Krys to think that a remarkable genius like Spencer was lost. If anything, he probably was better off than her.

"You're officially an arcade pro Spencer Reid. Congrats." She declared with a hint of a smile. Tilting her head playfully at the young genius she felt another little fact coming on.

"Did you know that 97% of the human population will respond to 'congrats' with 'thank you'?" It was a totally true fact and it also applied to the phrase 'thank you' versus 'you're welcome' but somehow she doubted Spencer would want to listen to all of the little logistics. Now holding up a medium sized Cola for him she cocked her head slightly to the right. "True story."

Taking the drink he smiled. He never really drank cola. He just wasn't a big fan. Not that he really didn't like it, but Coffee did the trick so much better then soda did, though both were equal bad for you in different ways. He took a sip of the liquid finding it to be a little watered down, but then what would you expect from an arcade. They were here to make money and scam little kids with over priced under quality drinks and heart-attacks on a stick. Smiling he said, "Well in that case I might as well be a statistic. Thank you, Krys Robin."

"Not a problem Spencer Reid." Krys returned the sentiment, she was actually quite content that he seemed to be humoring her. He listened to her facts and even contributed. Could she ask for anything better? "And no worries. You're not just a statistic or a number." She offered with a half shrug. Most people looked relatively normal holding nachos and a soda but Krys found a resemblance between Spencer and a kid at his very first baseball game. His tall form sweemed dwarfed by the things he was holding and everything going on around him. This comparison amused her, though for once she wouldn't voice it. Occasionally, she could keep herself in check.

Reaching out and stealing a nacho she took a bite, chewing thoughtfully. "So what do you usually do for fun Spence?" She somehow was willing to bet that his answer included: library, scientific experiments, or work (which wasn't even a real answer anyway). Not like hers was much better, she doubted that he'd appreciate: arcades, occasional zoo visits, randomness, and being locked in 'my lair' alone. "You do have fun?.. Don't you?" Maybe he was one of those overachievers who constantly worked. God, if she only had the focus to be one of those.

The question forced Reid to stop and think a second. It wasn't so must as he didn't have fun as he didn't know what she would think was fun. Finally he decided that the best answer would have to be the truth, after all he had decided that he wasn't going to lie to her any more. "Most the time I work. I do find my job fun, though it can be hard and disheartening at times. But its still the joy of my day. In my down time, and believe me I don't have very much, I like to read, and sleep. I need as much sleep as I can get." He thought about all the times that he had gone days with out any sleep. Or times he had ran for weeks with only a few hours here and there. Being on call 24/7 made it really hard to get enough sleep.

Krys herself was on call also on call 24/7. The only thing that kept her going was Energy drinks, which was the kind of drink she was holding now. It was actually a brained that had been disbanded years ago, but was still cared in arcades.

"But a job isn't who you are." The analyst stated matter of fact, her smile gone for the moment. "It's a part of you but it doesn't make you who you are. It shouldn't." If that was the case with other things Krys should have been an emotional wreck from her childhood. Now, maybe she was a mess of sorts but she didn't show it publicly and she hid it well from everyone, including herself.

When Krys insisted that you weren't your work Reid had to agree but disagree. He knew that that wasn't what it should be, but he also knew that when you had no time but to work that became who you are. There wasn't really anything wrong with it, only that you were able to pull away from it when it really mattered and be there for your family and friends when you really needed to be. As of yet Reid knew that he had failed at that. He knew that he wasn't there for his mom, but that wasn't because of his work. He used his work as a shield, or an accuse in this matter. If he was to busy working he didn't have to go and see her.

"What do you like to read?" She found herself changing the topic. She doubted that Spencer wanted to listen to her talk as seriously as she had been, let alone debate the importance of a job to a person. It'd probably be best just to avoid all of Reid could answer though, she felt a buzzing in her pocket. "Ooo.. Hello there." She commented, more so to herself before reaching into her back pocket and pulling out her phone, checking the front of it. Her smile faded upon seeing the source of the call and she immediately pocketed the cell. "I have to go. I have another meeting with the PD here.."

Reid first found it ironic that she was called off before he was. Second he was saddened that the fun must end. He didn't know when the next time he would be able to do something like that again.

"But, before I do..." Reaching into her bag she retrieved the tickets and, since Spencer's hands were full, she tucked them into his pants pocket. "Buy yourself something nice." She teased as she wrinkled up her face just to get a smile. Automatically her hand was back in her messenger bag, digging around.

"Get yourself something like... Here we are." Her right hand gave a pull and freed the object from whatever hold the confines of the bag had on it. "One of these." In her hand was a cheap little blue monster finger puppet with big googly eyes. Pretty much an arcade staple no matter where you went. "I collect them. One from every arcade I visit. I have a ton! You can have this one though." And without even waiting for a 'yay' or 'nay' she went up on her toes and set it right ontop of the lid of the Cola he was holding.

Going back down on the flats of her feet she pocketed her hands. "Thanks for... Well.." Her words never came out quite the way she wished them to, so instead she reverted back to their little game with a bit of a sigh mixed in with a smile. "Did you know that 99% of people, when one says goodbye, will respond with the same?"

He really didn't want to take the finger puppet, he could "buy" one with the tickets, but he wasn't about to fight it. The gift made the good-bye a little easier, anyway. "Well then I guess… good-bye... for now." He said quickly he looked down at his bag. Then he looked at the stuff in his hands then at Krys.

"Hey can you go into my bag. There's a small slot in the back with a few cards in it. Can you grab one?" He said then quickly added. "Be careful, though, I have my gun in there." He made sure his voice was low encase anyone over heard him. Sure he was aloud to have a gun with him, but in a kid filled arcade he knew it wouldn't go over to nicely.

It wasn't like he was afraid she was going to find something he "wasn't" suppose to have. No he was afraid that she might bump the gun and become scared, or that hr had forgotten to put the safety on it. Though he knew he hadn't. At any given moment Reid checked the safety a dozen times before placing it in his bag. It would a sad day if he hadn't and the gun went off and killed him or anyone else. He wasn't looking for a heroic death, but he knew he would look like a fool if he dead because he didn't have on the safety.

"Yeah. Sure." Krys nodded, though her brow furrowed perplexed at what he would need his card for in the middle of an arcade. Of course she wasn't putting two and two together and didn't even think that he was going to give her the card. Krys wasn't that self centered. She didn't live under the illusion that every moment involving her revolved around her. No, in her mind she was just background noise, a supporting character. Sure she contributed to the plot in the movie that was her life, but she certainly wasn't the central character.

"You're allowed to carry a gun?" Her voice was quiet so not to draw alarm or alert anyone else. Krys blinked and instantly looked up with slightly widened eyes at this news. "How many degrees did you need to get for that?" It was a rhetorical question of course, hence the little smile. This time Reid actually got the joke and laughed softly.

Reaching into the bag she felt around for the location he described. After a few seconds she finally found the little slot in the back of the bag. Her fingers attempted to wiggle into the opening so to remove just one, and not make a complete mess of things.

"Here you go." Her right hand held out the card that Spencer had told her to fetch, clearly not comprehending the current concept

Reid could help but think it was funny first that she didn't get the point. "Keep it. Its yours. If your ever in the area call me." He wanted to add that he might not be around but instead he just added. "Or call any time so we can just talk. Doesn't matter the time of day, I'll probably be up anyway." He smiled a large smile, glade to see that one of his jokes had actually turned out being funny, or at least he thought that it was. It really did sound funny and not at all corny, but then what did he know?

"Really?" She looked to the smiling young man with disbelief as the words sunk in. True she had been showering him with various odds and ends all day but this simple exchange of a card meant the world to her even if it was only done solely out of formality.

"Thanks." She commented, managing to swallow down her surprise so she didn't look like an even bigger loser. "I'd give you mine but I don't have one." Sliding the card into her messenger bag she knew he probably wouldn't call her even if she did have one, and she wasn't a huge personal phone call-er herself. She preferred texting, or the internet. "But you know Garcia so I'm sure she can weave about and find some way to reach me."

Reid was pleased to see that Krys was excited to be given the card. He knew that she needed more friends, and in a way he needed more it. Actually he probably needed them more because he wasn't good at talking to new people while she was. he looked forward to the next time the two of them were able to be together. (To bad he didn't know the circumstances of the meeting yet.) He half smiled and said, "Yeah I'm sure I could get Garcia to uncover everything about you. But I'll only ask for your phone number." He was sure she wouldn't give him to much of a fight for that.

"Good luck Spencer." And with that she turned around and walked out of the arcade.

"I'll call if I need to." he muttered half to himself. "Good-bye Krys Robin. Until next time." He wanted to wave but with all his stuff he couldn't. When finally she was out of sight, which didn't take long he walked over to the prize counter. Setting the things down he put the finger puppet in his pocket and ate another nacho before throwing them out. He made a mental note to pay Krys back, one why or another, for the food he wasted. Then he looked over the prizes. Finally he bought a similar finger puppet, deciding that it was only fitting to get one. He was amazed to find that it took almost all of his tickets to buy. Then he gave the rest of them to a kid who looked like he needed some more to get what he wanted and exited the arcade, holding the toy in his hand. A few minutes later his phone rang calling him to work. He wasn't even sad about the fact that he never got the nap he wanted. Instead he couldn't wait till he could ask Garcia to find her phone number for him.


	3. This Isn't Your Common Cold

Chapter 3

This Isn't Your Common Cold

* * *

Hell. That's the only way to describe the last two days. Early in the morning a random case popped up of an initially unreported illness of one individual. Vomiting, bleeding through orphaces, fever, delusions, but before anyone could think of diagnosing it the man had passed away. They wouldn't have had time to anyways. Next thing they knew a nurse who had been treating the man had it, then his wife, then several others who had been at the same movie theater the night before. Cases were popping up everywhere and by day two New York City was going into a state of panic and lockdown.

Most people hid in their homes (though it was proven that the so called virus was not airborne). It had to be transferred through saliva, blood, or breaking of the skin. It was clear by the coincidence of the movie theater that it had originated there somehow and the building was currently closed up and under quarantine as was the hospitals where the 'victims' were being treated behind plexi glass. In order to enter you had to be in a full-body contamination suit. It was heavy duty stuff and everyone was in a panic. It was all over the news.

Counter Terror was of course the first faction of the Bureau called as this seemed to be an intentional, yet random attack and the virus, upon study of the strain had been man manipulated. The man was still at large and they had little clues. Not that they had much time to find the man because currently they had to deal with those sick and quarantining everyone, not to mention tending to the worried citizens. So various other factions of the Bureau had been called and this included the BAU who should be arriving from the airport any minute.

Matthew Grimaldi ran his hand over his neck with a bit of a cringe, the lack of sleep present in his tired eyes as he stood in the middle of Counter Terrorism head quarters where everyone would be functioning from. The control center. Just outside the window he could swear he heard someone scream as someone they loved was taken from their home (when people thought they might be sick they were to dangle a white sheet out of their home and a unit would come to pick them up).

He had tuned out half the briefing but he knew it all anyway, he read the file at least a hundred times, heck, he was living it. This was home grown. This was his turf. Matt didn't like it when someone messed with his turf. But now it was his turn to speak to the many 'guests' at CT (not something he enjoyed) his voice gruff, and serious. "You'll each be assigned to different teams with various functions. Some of you may even be put on collection.." His dark eyes surveyed the surroundings and behind all of the suit clad bodies he could barely make out the five foot three frame of Krys Robin.

She looked horribly lost amidst everyone who was much larger than she. She was glancing around with worried eyes and remarkably melancholy. _Poor kid can never catch a break. On her own birthday too._ Matt thought lowly. He hadn't forgotten that her birthday was on this day but with everything going on sometimes you just didn't have time. He felt awful because he had spent so much time picking out a gift and now it didn't look like they'd ever have a spare second. She'd understand though. Matt knew his data analyst better than most.

"Take it away, Robin." He announced, gesturing toward her as the group turned around.

"I uh--" Krys blinked, for a moment startled at being called so suddenly, though she did know she would have to speak being the head of her department. "Right!" As quick as she had been she got right back on track, immediately weaseling through the audience toward a massive whiteboard where a map had been drawn with red dots littering it. She hopped right onto a chair beside it so that she could see everyone, and consequently them her.

"The assumed host site is here-" With a blue marker she drew a circle, her brain going a thousand miles a minute as she addressed everyone loudly, hoping to garner and keep their attention. "The two hospitals that have been quarantined and are taking victims are here.. and... here-" Two more circles as she turned to face out. "Central Head Quarters is here. I'll be on headset all of the time." Catching a warning glance from Matt which screamed that he wanted her to get some rest, she of course ignored it and corrected herself in the worst way possible. "24/7, rain or shine, late or early, even if my shows are on. I'll be here."

Her hands gesturing outward on the chair, the marker in her right hand, she continued to speak as animatedly as possible (though it was quite apparent she was tired despite being hocked up on AMP energy drink). "I've got the entire world at my fingertips so anything you need - ask. You need to be patched to another division, give me a holler." She did not move to step down from the chair , from her own tiredness her brain was functioning like usual and she just didn't think to step down.

"Alright. Check with one of us from CT; Agents Saunders, Chezaneski, Duncomb, Wolfe, or myself to see what faction you are with." He told everyone as their heads snapped around to look at him. "No more formalities lets get to work." Once again the room was hustling and bustling, buzzing with sound.

* * *

Over the last few weeks Reid hadn't called Krys, but at the same time Krys hadn't called her. It wasn't like they lost contact. When Garcia found out that Reid meet the same person she had a few days earlier she was over-joyed. As it turned out there was no way you couldn't not like Krys Robin.

While neither had time to call each other they did e-mail back and forth everyday. It was when Garcia came to Reid one day smiling from ear to ear that Reid found a reason to see his new friend again. As it turned out Krys' birthday was in a few weeks. Of course Krys didn't like it, and had refused to tell any of her new friends, but of course Garcia had her ways of finding out, Reid didn't even want to know what. Through inquires Garcia found out that Krys had never had a birthday party, and didn't want one. Now Garcia couldn't have that. So in a very Penelope like manner, along with the help and support of Reid, she started to plan a surprise birthday party for her.

Reid had planed to take a couple of days off and spend some time with her in New York. That plan was quickly shot down though. Even before they got the official request the news was broadcasted all over. New York was in a state a panic, and the police had nothing. There was no way they weren't going to be called in. So Reid was going to be heading up to New York anyway, but unfortunately it wasn't for the reason that he had been hoping for.

Flying over the place was even worse then he could have expected. White sheets over the house were a sign of an infected person. It almost seemed like a ghost town out there with people to afraid to move an inch. Reid was ware that anyone of them in the plane now could get infected while investigating. They were first of all trying to find the source and the profile, the preliminary one they had formed, said that the attacker would try and take out as many of them as he could before killing himself (Though it was most likely a cell of people.)

The flight itself was deathly quite. Everything that needed to be said had already been said. Hotch watched the ground fearing the lives of his family, though they were miles away. Not a thread of fear was for his own life, though. JJ too was in a panic over her baby and new husband. What if the virus spread? How long could they keep it in one city? Everyone had someone they could loss.

Garcia sat across from Reid staring with horror at the city bellow. She didn't travel very often, and Morgan would have rather she stay at home for this one most of all, but in the end it was decided that it would be best if she came along. Being the best technical annalist the FBI had she would be of more use in the middle of the action, no matter how dangerous it was.

After what seemed liked a year they finally landed in the vacant New York airport. And after another long few minutes they found themselves in the Bureau's Counter Terror unit. The place was packed full of people, far to many for the small bull pen to take. As the team walked in they caught the end of the briefing, not that it matter they knew the case inside and out anyway, with Krys pointing to the map.

Reid felt his stomach churn at the sight of her. It was an odd feeling that he could quite explain. It was a mix between relief that she was okay, fear that she wouldn't be later, and happiness to see her again. It was odd to feel so strongly for a girl he only meet once. Morgan seemed to have his own idea about what was going on between the two, making comments that Reid never really understood.

When the briefing was over the seven BAU members started to worm their way through the crowd toward Agent Grimaldi, Krys being a few feet from him. The sudden noise that erupted when Matt was done talking was almost unbearable. They could tell that he wasn't very happy about this. Not only at what was being done to his city, but also all the other team braking up his tree. They knew that it wasn't going to be easy.

"Agent Aaron Hotchner." Hotch said reaching out to shake Matt's hand when they finally reached the two. Matt's eyes looked over the seven agents in front of him. Taking Hotch's hand he didn't even hid the frustration in his eyes. "Where with the Behavior Analysis Unit." He added hoping to again some respect.

"Yes I know." Matt said coldly his eyes seemed to wonder over to Reid for a moment. Reid looked at the man for just a second, before he sent a glance at Hotch.

"Happy Birthday Krys!" Garcia's cheerful voice cut through the awkward silence as she approached Krys still standing on the chair. Krys, looking embarrassed at have someone remember her birthday finally remembered to step down.

"Um…Thanks." She said with a small smile. To be completely honest her birthday was long forgotten, and part of her wanted it to remain that way. Krys was an oddball in many ways and with these ways came her ability to decompartementalize (usually) when it came to data and personal. In work she could easily shrug all prior emotions on a topic out the window for the pursuit of facts. That's just how she functioned, it was much like how she survived when being hit by her drunken father. It was just a way of separating herself from a situation. Then her eyes wondered to Reid. Her smile widened for a moment before it turned into a frown remembering the circumstances in which the two where finally meeting again under.

Reid knew that he should have followed Garcia's led and said Happy Birthday. He didn't want to make her think that he had forgotten. But he felt odd standing around so many people. All of them apple to hear him mutter the words. Even harder was the fact that he could feel the tension coming off of Agent Grimaldi. He wasn't sure if he was just being paranoid, or if the man actually hated him. What ever it was, though, it was hard to ignore. Instead Reid shot her a quick glace, hoping by some miracle Matt didn't see it, and smiled. Krys winked, obviously understanding what Reid was trying to say, then turned back to the map.

"Were can I set up?" Garcia added her mood changing from happy to serious in a split second. She had a job to do and she was ready to do it.

"My lair is your lair. Mi lair es tu lair." She rambled off the limited spanish that she knew just to be witty, or keep herself calm. But really it wasn't helping. Luckily she'd be stuck in the lab away from the people and what made the case so humane. Little did she know later in the day would have other plans.

Garcia nodded and started off down the hallway, with no real idea where she was going, but she knew she could find it. Actually all she had to do was follow the trail of empty AMP energy drinks and she would have found it easy-beasy.

Even more annoyed than before Matt said, "Why don't we find some where quieter to talk?" And with that he started off. As he past a fairly short brunette woman with haunted brown eyes he barked, "Saunders, with me." She young agent turned quickly and feel in line with Matt, Krys, and the BAU team. The group entered a glass walled conference room just off the bull pen. Matt turned to look at those around him. The team of supposed Profilers didn't seem to be much. How were they supposed to help?

His eyes once again found the man that he knew as soon as he saw him was Dr. Spencer Reid. The guy Krys had been talking about for the last weeks. She acted like he was some great guy. But from what Matt saw he didn't seem to be much. What could Robin possible see in him? He was sick and bones. More awkward looking then she even was. Then his eyes moved to Kate. His partner. She was young, new, hadn't even been in the Bureau a year yet. She wasn't quite right, no one liked her, and she seemed to like no one. But he had taken her under his wing, just like he had Krys all those year ago.

Kate stood some feet from Matt watching the crowd around her. Her eyes were wide and her heart was racing a thousand times a minute. This was real. The next large terror attack had come. All the deaths that had already happened. All the lives turning to chaos. In this room were all the people that could help. The last defense. It was all so surreal to her. Like a bad dream. Yet she knew it wasn't a nightmare, she never dreamt. This was all happening. The panic. The quarantine. She tried to remember if this was what it was like last time. But she was on the other side of the wall that time, she was the victim. This time she was going to save those that they needed to saved. No one had to lose their family like she had. This was the moment that she had waited her entire life for. But now that it was here she felt sick.

Kate was shaking, and not only from heroin withdraw, in fact she had just a fresh hit not to long ago. The thing was she knew that once the day went on she would find less time to be alone, she wasn't to sure what she would do then. Actually she wasn't sure if she was going to be able to keep it a secret any more. Then again she didn't care if it was found out today. She had gotten to this day and as long as she saved some families then she was okay, after that she was ready to die. This was what she had been waiting for her whole life. Eight years and that day was finally here. The other part of her shaking was from the fear, the heat of the room, and the raw adrenaline that was pumping through her system. She was ready to get out there and get the guy that had done this.

There was a pause before Matt finally spoke. "Agent Hotchner I understand that it would be best if you spoke to the victims?" He said his gruff voice hard.

"Yes," Hotch responded keeping his voice level and unbiased. "Its for Victim-ology."

"Knowing why this people where targeted can help use determine who the UNSUB is." Rossi explained, only gaining a sharp look from Matt.

"Saunders," Matt suddenly said after a pause. "Where do we have the BAU team placed?" It was more of an order than a question.

Kate was surprised when Matt called on her to talk. This was not were she worked. She worked undercover, she fought the bad guys from the inside out, she barely know what to do in a normal investigation. Though this would never be normal. There was a few seconds in which she fumbled with the clipboard in her hand containing each and ever persons name on it and their assignments.

After finding the BAU she quickly stated, "Hotchner, Reid, and Morgan at the hospital. Jareau with Chezaneski. Prentiss and Rossi at the movie theatre."

No one moved. Not even when they were "told" where they were to go. A few eyes looked at Hotch to see what he would say about the assignments, but he didn't say anything. It was actually Matt who broke the silence again.

"Chez." He suddenly shouted and waved at the door. A tall woman with long brown hair entered the crowded room a little too carefully.

"Matt?" She inquired looking from person to person. She really didn't like being around crowds, especially those made up mostly of men. Though she was able to keep that secret hidden deep down bellow the surface. In a time like this, though, she was finding it harder and harder to keep her calm, collected manner.

"This is Agent Hayley Chezaneski, Counter Terror's media Liaison. Agent Jareau, you will be working with her." Matt said.

JJ smiled and approached the other woman. "Nice to meet you, Agent Chezaneski."

"You can call me Chez." Hayley responded shaking JJ's hand. She could tell that she was going to like Agent Jareau. She was nice. Seemed to have it together. She was a lot like she was actually. Not to mention she was glade she would finally have some help. The media was going crazy about this, and they needed to get a hold of this before the entire nation was calling it an attack of terrorism, which might have been true. But from what the team had been saying before, this didn't seem to be an attack of terrorism. How that could be JJ had no idea.

"Okay, call me JJ." She said as the two liaisons walked out of the room, ready to getting started on their job. There was no reason for JJ to "ask" if that was what she was to do. It was her position, and the only thing right now that she knew she would be able to do effectively. She wasn't a profiler like the rest of the team, other than Garcia.

After watching Chez and JJ leave. Fear in his eyes for a split second as he watched yet another one of his team mates walk away into danger. Though she wasn't going to be leaving the building, at least not farther than the front steps. She would have to be safe, wouldn't she? "Okay," He said as soon as JJ and Chez were out the door. "Kate, with Agent Rossi." He said seemingly to purposefully skip Emily's name. Come this guy really be sexist? "Hotchner your group with me." He ordered starting to leave.

"Actually…" Hotch interrupted Matt's leaving. He turned back around with icy eyes threatening to hurt Hotch if there wasn't a good explanation for this. "We have a palmary profile that we'd like to share with you." He explained.

Matt stood with his feet firmly on the ground ready to here what kind of crap this guys had come up with. How on earth could they already know enough about person to have a profile? Crossing his arms over his chest he muttered, "Okay, what?"

A normal person would have been taken aback but the crass remark. But not Hotch. As smoothly as if Matt hadn't said anything he went into the profile they had come up with earlier as if this was any other case. "There is most likely two or more UNSUBs." He began.

"But don't think that this means that it's a terrorist attack. Chances are that this is a cause driven offender from New York City. This was his target. Something here." Emily continued quickly with the sudden urge to have to prove herself to Matthew. She actually kind of wished she was going to the hospital with him so she would have more chances to show him a girl could do "a guys work" ten times better.

"That sounds like a terrorist to me." Kate said in her normal I don't care tough girl tone of voice.

"Yes, but the difference between these UNSUBs and terrorist is their motive is against a specific person or persons in this town, not an entire nation." Rossi explained. Even in his years in the Bureau he had never seen anything like this. Or even more accurate never been in anything like this. And deep down he was scared to death by it.

"If we can find out why they targeted the places that they did, then we can find them." Reid said his mind already working a mile a minute. His eyes made there way to yet another map a New York City, luckily with the areas Krys had been talking about before marked on them. He advanced toward it, barely seeing Krys standing a few feet from it. Having blended in through out the entire briefing. "Do you mind if I draw on this?" He asked no one in particular.

"Sure. Go for it Picasso." Came Krys' flat, upstate sounding sarcastic voice, though not at all offensive. Reid pulled out a dozen markers off all different colors out of his messenger bag. "I've sketched out the boroughs. The red dots represent locations of the victims infected, green dots represent possible infections via contact with victim not location... Through doing that I've deducted the probably source of contact is here." She pointed to a movie theatre with a spare marker she had picked up.

"Last night thirty people checked themselves into the following hospitals." Point. Point. Point. "Within six hours the first two victims were dead. We're now up to fifteen." God she hated talking about people like numbers but really it was the only way to not get attached.

He looked up at the map, not even seeing the Technical analyst next to it. There was no time to let his feelings for Krys get in the way, he was worried, sure, but he couldn't let that get in the way.

For now they could rule out the hospitals, as far as they knew this had nothing to do with where those people were stationed now, but remembering the last terror attack it had ended up being the hospital that was under attack, the chances of that happening again where so far fetched, though. Listening to what she said he started to put things together in his head. thirty people infected in the last 18 hours, two victims were dead in the first six hours. Those would have been the first to be infected, by most chances. Now fifteen where dead, and near a hundred were in the hospital. His mind was working a thousand times a minute.

After a few moments of Reid forgetting that he was suppose to be explaining the geographic profile to those around him he began to talk. "Based on where the first victims were infected we can determine what the significance of that location to the UNSUBs. Or who was the initial target." he explained looking over the map at all the points trying to find the pattern that he knew was there. Finally after a moment of silence he said to Hotch. "I'd like to stay here and work the geographic profile."

Hotch nodded, though the young man was still facing the board and couldn't see it. Hotch was about to voice his agreement when Matt made an advance for the young agent. While Hotch stayed put, knowing that Matt was just being hostel because so many people had died. Morgan on the other hand took a step forward, to protect his "little brother".

Clearing his throat he shook his head, he wasn't going to leave room in the conversation for him to be snapped at in return. "You go wherever your team wants you. Just stay out of the way." He announced before breaking away from the group, eying Kate for a moment (to see how she was holding up).

Reid stopped in his tracks at the sound of Grimaldi's voice. He looked from the map to older man with worried eyes. Why did this guy hate him so much? What had he ever done to upset him?

"Robin." Matt hinted in a gruff voice, though not terrifying as Krys immediately turned to face him. It was apparent, though his dark and intimidating demeanor, he was looking out for her, even if it wasn't necessarily in the way others would wish. One thing was for sure, Matthew was extremely intense with all of these outside agents bustling about his terf, not to mention a certain Agent in particular who Krys had mentioned a few too many times for his liking

."They need you in the back running a check through the symptoms and possible disease mutations." He rattled off lowly, Krys now looking like a puppy being ordered not to piddle on the carpet. "Ten minutes ago. You're not supposed to be handing out your key either." That was all Krys needed to depart, doing her best to weasel past the crowd though she was easily bumped about being only five foot three. Matt then looked to the BAU agents with a less than friendly face.

Krys looked at Matt with stunned eyes for an instant. Than she regained her composer and no matter how much she wanted to stay with Reid she left the room. She walked through the hall, which was surprisingly empty when she felt suddenly light headed, something she wasn't exactly used to, and then made herself stand on the side. Her back against the cool wall. She fwapped herself lightly in the face with one of the folders she was carrying, trying to get her head back in the game.

"Tomatoes are fruits, not vegetables." She murmured the fact to herself quietly in a tone of disdain, aimed at herself. Shutting her eyes for a moment she tried to gather herself, her wits and her focus which currently she was struggling with. She was just so tired, but she knew she had to push herself through this. She wanted to help... But why did she always get stuck in the lair? How could she help anyone from inside the Bureau? It was beginning to get redundant.

Matt then went to stand in the door way. He was ready to go. He had no more patients for standing around talking. He had to do something. Get into action.

Hotch quickly said. Trying to ignore Matt waiting impatiently, "You stay here Reid." Then he looked at Morgan silently telling him it was time to go. This was going to end up being a very long day.

Nodding he turned back to the map for a second then at Morgan. "Is it just me or was there something wrong with the way he's acting?" he asked in a whisper hoping that the other man didn't hear him. His eyes meeting Kate Saunders for a moment, having forgotten that the other CT agent had been there.

Kate watched as Matt moved away. He seemed to have taken a shine to this Spencer Reid, as well as the rest of his team. It was going to be hard to work with Matt when he was being so frustrated and unreasonable. In fact Kate was thinking that today she was the one that was going to have to lecture him, an odd change of event. Yet Kate wasn't much better. She was trigger happy, the moment she saw the jerks that did this they were dead and no one was telling her any different. Luckily no one knew this because no one knew her past.

Smiling at Reid she said, "Matty's just being difficult." She knew if Matt heard her call him Matty she would be dead, luckily he had no care for what Kate was doing today. "That means that he likes you." She added with a wink. Some might think that now was not the time to be making jokes and being sarcastic, but Kate thought that there was no better time. As long as she wasn't putting anyone in danger there was no harm in it. She leaning against the long table and waited for her group to decided it was time to go. In the back of her mind she was aware that they could probably learn more about her by her actions then she would like them to, but there was no time to worry about that now.

Morgan decided to take a more suddel approach to the question then Kate, though it was good to see that she was at least some what on their side. "Tensions are high, kid." This was already at a stage that they were losing control of - there were dead and there were sick, and it was taking place in one of the most crowded cities in America. This was a situation that could only be described as hell. "And we're on his turf." Morgan added, after a second. he guessed that the man didn't like people encroaching on his turf, his team. Despite the territorial feelings, and despite the fact that Morgan was gritting his teeth in response to being forced to a different location and Matt's harsh words towards Reid, they'd have to force themselves to all get along, for the greater good. And they had to get themselves going, soon.

"And I don't like you." Matt corrected Kate's words about Spencer. He hadn't meant them to come off as cold as they did but he didn't enjoy being spoken for, let alone being made out to be some sort of softie with a heart. No, that pleasure was reserved for certain special people.

"Sooner we get going, sooner we can stop this son of a bitch." Morgan added after a pause and exited the room. It was probably best to not keep Matt waiting to long. With that Morgan, and Hotch followed Matt out of the room.

Kate felt kind of out of place. She was probably the only one who know what Matt hated Dr. Reid so much. It was Krys. Matt had always been protective over her, sometimes to the point of seeming in love, though Kate had figured out that they weren't in love, there was no way. And now it seemed Krys had made a new "friend" and that friend was a guy and Matt was as protective as a father cleaning his rifle by the door. It was kind of annoying. She would have a talk with him when they were alone. The same talk that he would give her if she didn't have her head in the game while undercover. It was the same concept.

Finally Hotch and Matt agreed and they were on there way. She wasn't going to have fun running around town with Emily and Rossi, but she had no other choose. As soon as their boss was out of the room they too went out, ready also to get started. Before she followed them she looked at Reid and said, "Matt's having his period, don't worry, it'll pass." Then she left the room, a small smirk on her face. In all truth it was kind of like he was.


	4. Quarantine

**Authors Note:** Thank you for all the great reviews. I keep forgetting to say that this takes place sometime in the middle of the fourth session before Amplification (Episode 24).

* * *

Chapter 4

Quarantine

* * *

The ride to the hospital was more uncomfortable than it had been back in the CT office. Matt, who was driving the large SUV, didn't say a word to either of the men in the car. And when Morgan or Hotch tried to say something, even to each other, he would give them a hard and long glare that even made Hotch wry. This was a lot more than just him being ticked off about this happening in his town. What else was going on was a mystery, however, even to the experienced profilers.

When they finally made it to the hospital Morgan was surprised to find that he was actually relieved. It felt wrong to feel so while standing in front of a building that hundreds of people were dieing in. Not to mention talking to those people wasn't going to be fun at all, but Morgan couldn't image it being worse than the fifteen minute car ride.

Before the three could even enter the hospital they were forced into a large white tent surrounded by men (and women) wearing large, white containment suits. Making the three feel like they were being swarmed by hundreds of angry ghosts. After a quick check to make sure none of them were showing any of the virus symptoms, which would be hard to miss, they were given their own suits and finally allowed to enter the hospital.

Hospitals are sad and desolate on a normal day, and today it was ten times worse. The normally active front lobby was completely empty and silent. Not even the dozen agents', beyond the front door, noise found their way into entrée way. It felt like a ghost town. All the death that had happened in the hospital over only the last day was thick in the air. So thick that you could almost taste it and smell it in the to sterol smell even though the quarantine sick rooms were several floors above them.

Everyone that didn't need to be there had been evacuated. Only so many doctors and nurses remained in the building to care for the sick and dieing. The patients to sick to move had been transferred to another hospital had been moved as far away from the quarantined zone as physically possible. The few doctors and nurses assigned to stay with them were to wear face masks and gloves at all times, even when not seeing a patient. (There wasn't enough full body containment suites for them to have any.)

The three agents slowly made there way to the elevator. The sound of their padded foot steps echoing through out the building like dieing heart beats. The sound of the elevator dinging open was so loud in the dead silence that it seemed it could have woken the dead.

Though the severity of what was going on seemed to be shown by the little of the building they had already seen the worst of it was still yet to come. Nothing could have prepared them from what they were about to see next. The pain and death that the floor contained. Even the profilers that had seen the worst of man kind and what they could do had no idea what a real disaster was like. And this was only one hospital of it. The second one, though not quite as bad, was just as tragic. This was wear the first victim had been taken and later died. Where the second, and third died. Where they were up to fifteen deaths, as the other hospital had yet to see one. But one could only image how long that could hold. Even in the ever optimist eyes you had to wonder if it was even possible to find a cure before it was to late for so many others. How many would die? How long did they have?

As of yet they had no real time line on the virus. It seemed to take effect to different victims differently. The first man to have died, Brett Hyll, died after only six hours of supposed exposure. While twenty year old Michael Lee who had been to the same move as Hyll had held on for nearly twelve hours, just hours before the BAU team had made it to New York. It seemed to attack men faster than women. And the older you were the fast you would die. But in the case of seventy-one year old Jasper Trahile they suspected he had been one of the first infected sixteen hours ago and he was still alive, barely, but still alive.

The tension that had formed between the three men from the short minutes ago that they meet quickly disappeared when the doors slide open. Even though the slightly fogged plastic barrier inches from the elevator door they could see just had bad this was. Blurry figures of suited men and women hastily walking by. Sounds of coughing, beeping, and even in the distance the sound of someone flat lining. The smell of blood was thick in the air and it made all three men, no matter how strong they thought they were, want to throw up.

Hotch, Morgan, and Matt just stood in front of the plastic door, afraid to venture into hell. Every muscle in their body's became tense in fear for not only the patients dieing before them. But for their team members either out in the field or even in the safety of the FBI, for how could anyone be safe?

Morgan and Hotch worried about Emily and Rossi off to the movie theatre, where it all began, the heart of the storm. Then there was Reid who always seemed to end up in trouble no matter what he did. JJ with her new family to think about. And then there was Garcia. Morgan didn't know what he would do with out her. Why did she had to come with them? Why could she had stayed safe at home?

Matt worried about Kate, the reckless women didn't care about her life and what if she didn't realize the danger she would be putting everyone else in? And Krys, the girl wasn't really one to care about herself, she would give her life in an instant to save someone else even if the person that needed to saving more was her. Not to mention she hadn't sleep since the night before the outbreak. which had been nearly 36 hours ago. Then there was Chez. Deep in the bit of his stomach he knew that he cared for her most of all.

Morgan being the first one to gain the strength to move approached the door. He was going to go in there and figure this out, if only to protect his baby doll. The move forced the other two men to continue through the plastic door as well.

What was on the other side was even worse yet. (Even if they couldn't have imagined it so.) The sound was almost ear piercing in compare to the deathly silence. Every person not in a bed was incased in a suite. Patients lay in beds behind glass walls hooked to so many machines that they could move. Several were coughing, blood smeared across their chins. Some even had blood coming out of their eyes and nose. There was moaning, and cries of agony. Doctors and nurses shouted across the hall at each other, calling codes and medicine needed. Hotch couldn't help but think that they most likely didn't have enough for everyone.

As soon as the entered a doctor came up to them. He tried to smile at the new comers, give them a formal greeting, after all there needed to be a little joy and hoe here, but ended up failing. Throwing away his attempt he said, "You must be the agents." They had been called the moment the SUV pulled into the parking lot. If there was any hope it was them. They were supposed to be the best, as rumor went though no one actually knew who they were the details being lost in the chaos.

"Yes, Agents Hotchner, Morgan, and Grimaldi." Hotch said though everything past "yes" was lost to the doctor. There was no time to remember names, or titles. There was work to be done for both agent and doctor. Which Hotch understood very well, thus he got straight to the point. "We would like to talk to Jasper Trahile. Is he still lucid?"

"In and out." The doctor answered already starting to walk. As they got further and further into the chaos they started to lose more and more of what reality was. Hotch couldn't see how a doctor could continually work in this environment with out going crazy. They had only been there a minute and he could already feel his head spinning. He felt like he couldn't breath. He needed air, real air, not the still being filtered in to him. He was ready to do theses interviews as fast as he could in order to get out of the hell hole they had fallen into.

The group soon stopped in front of a glass door. The patient inside the room was coughing, blood staining the white blanket on top of him. He looked like he had to be a hundred years old. His face was pale and every bone could be seen. He looked in pain, yet there was something in his eye. Some sort of glissom of hope. It almost seemed unreal. No one could look in so much pain yet still have hope. The man had to be near death. The vomit bucket sat next to the bed on the night stand. You could clearly see the fresh ruby red blood floating in stomach vile (As he had eaten nothing in the last day to throw up).

"We don't think he'll make it much longer." The doctor said sadness deep in his voice. Yet it was still plan. No sign of pain in saying. He had seen so many people die today that the feeling was starting to leave him. In truth, though, the man would be better off dead. At least then he wouldn't have to suffer. He had been giving Morphine for the pain, yet there wasn't enough to help him, others needed it more. Not that more would really help. His insides were literally liquefying, one of the most pain full and long deaths there was.

Nodding Hotch entered the room followed by Morgan and Matt. At first it seemed that Mr. Trahile didn't see them. Hotch feared that they might have caught him in a less lucid state. Or maybe that would be good. He shouldn't have to relive what had happened again. But then Jasper's eyes fell on to the three suited men. A small smile crossed his face. "Hello." he said his voice raspy and weak.

"Mr. Trahile…." Matt said before his voice failed him. He had never seen someone in such a state. Even through all the terrorist attacks he had seen over the years, this man was the worst off. From closer you could see the blood stain in his hair by his ears, and the slight pink color under his eyes and nose from where the blood had been wiped away and hadn't started to fall yet.

"Where with the FBI." Hotch continued for Matt. He know that Matt was struggling to deal with this, they all were. And by no means would he ever hold this against the other agent. They all had their moments, and Hotch was quickly reaching his though he was refusing to let it show.

"FBI." The old man repeated as if amazed that he would be talking to them. As if this situation wasn't as bad as it was. He was just a high school teacher after all, he never in his life thought he would even see an FBI agent let alone talk to one. "What did the doctor say?" He suddenly asked after a pause taking everyone by surprise. Their masked faces must have shown their shock of the question because he added, "Don't worry, I know I'm going to die." He actually seemed happy by the thought. "I'll be with Mary-Ann again."

Mary-Ann had been with him at the movies. She had started to show symptoms of the virus before her husband. It wasn't until they were at the hospital that Jasper start to feel sick as well. Only seven hours after being infected did she die. (She didn't have great health before that.)

"He said, Sir," Morgan answered knowing that he couldn't lie to him. Yet still, even though he seemed to want to die, not comfortable telling him that he was going to die. "that you don't have long." Morgan's heart skipped a beat at his own words. Yet Jasper smiled. His eyes closed for a moment, thinking about Mary-Ann and finally having peace again. Then he opened them to look at Morgan.

"Thank you." He chimed. Morgan had no idea why he should be thanked. Was it because he had actually told him the truth. He was going to ask, afraid that Mr. Trahile might be a little confused, or delusional. But they had no time and Hotch spook before he had a chance.

"Mr. Trahile, I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you what happened." He said his eyes focused on the frail body. Jasper didn't seem at all bothered by the question. He actually seemed to be happy that someone was talking to him. The nurses and doctors couldn't have much time for chit-chat.

Jasper Trahile started his story as if it was another story he would have told his grandchildren.

* * *

Jasper and Mary-Ann left their small suburb house around seven in the afternoon. They had been planning this night for a long time. It was their fiftieth wedding anniversary. Fifty years of happiness. Mary-Ann had been fifteen when she married the slightly older Jasper, at twenty-one, all those years ago after only knowing the man for a few weeks. As it turned out the sudden marriage turned out to be the best decision they ever made.

The had just finished eating a large dinner, by old people standards, and were planning to go and see the knew French movie playing at a small theatre near Broadway. The theatre was small, only holding about forty people, and it wasn't even near full. The faces of the others around him had been lost in Jasper's memory.

The movie had only gone on for twenty minutes, a very splendid twenty minutes. Even though Jasper couldn't speak French like his wife. And couldn't see the subtitles to read. But Mary-Ann seemed to be having the time of her life, laughing, and awing and oh-ing. Some times she would ask Jasper if he could believe that, or other strenuous comments that really made no sense to the husband. He was just happy to see she was happy.

Her health had been failing lately. She had trouble breathing, and refused to carry around an oxygen tank saying that if God wanted her to die then she would die happily. Though Jasper believed much of the same things as Mary-Ann he was ferrous that she would want to die, want to live him. He couldn't imagine his life with out her. And cursed her for not trying to live as long as she could with him.

It had been twenty minutes into the movie when Jasper first felt the water drops on his head. He looked up not seeming anything, and figured that it had to be some lousy kid playing a joke on them. He wasn't going to let that ruin their night. Five minutes passed, the water drops having stopping several minutes before, when someone higher in the auditorium shouted at someone to stop that Jasper smiled, knowing what the matter was, but still not going to comment on it, Mary-Ann seemed to happy.

When the drops started up again, fast this time, Mary-Ann started to feel them. Realization filled her lively blue eyes. "Do you want to go?" She asked knowing that the prank must have been going on for a long time and had be annoying Jasper.

"No. No." He answered and turned his attention back to the screen even though his back was pretty much completely wet now. There wasn't much time to contemplate whether it was the right decision or not because almost seconds later the sprinkler system came on pouring water all over those in the theatre.

Soaking wet the two decided that there was no more reason to stay. Upset that someone had ruined Mary-Ann's perfect night they left. Mary-Ann tried to insist that nothing had been ruined and that she was just happy to be with him. Still unconvinced Jasper took her home and tried to make it up to her by watching a movie on TV and voicing over it with words he thought sounded French, making it seem more funny than serious like the last movie had been. But the two still found the night fun.

That was until around ten o'clock when Mary-Ann got out of bed and throw-up. Jasper didn't need anything else to know that something was wrong with her. He quickly took her to the hospital in which he now lay dieing in. In the ER he was told that she just had the flu, and there was nothing to worry about. It wasn't until they found blood in her vomit that they started to think something was wrong. And of course they didn't even connect it to Brett Hyll who had been emitted into the ER only forty-five minutes before they were.

Soon Jasper started to show the same symptoms as his wife, and the doctors emitted him into the hospital as well. They were set up in the same room and up twelve at night there were several more cases of the virus. The doctors started to connect this with something bigger than they could have ever thought. At one in the morning Hyll had died. The doctors told Jasper, but not Mary-Ann who was in and out of consciousness. They suspected that on the same time line the two couldn't live much longer.

As it turned out Mary-Ann died a little over an hour later. Before she went she smiled up at Jasper and said, "I'm ready. Don't worry. I'm not scared." Jasper was though. But as she got closer and closer to death and the smile never left her face, and he started to realize what she had meant all those years. It wasn't about when you die, or how. It was about who you died with. And she was happy. And even though Jasper would later die alone, he felt ju7st as happy as she was. Because she was still there, with him in spirit. And once he died as well they would be together again, this time for eternity. He didn't care it he survived the virus and lived ten more years, he knew some day he would be joining Mary-Ann when the time was right.

A few hours after Mary-Ann's death the hospital evacuated and moved everyone with the Virus into quarantine. And that was were Jasper had been. Ready for what ever God throw at him. If he was going to die then he was okay with that.

* * *

Jasper's story shocked everyone. No one said a word after it was finished. A man that had gone through so much was still happy. Happier than Hotch had ever been since Haley left him. How could this be? How could he not be scared of death. Morgan the bravest guy on the team was terrified of death. How could he not be mourning the loss of his wife. Matt had lost his sister years ago, and he still cried for her.

The silence went on for several minutes. Then it was broken by the steady beep of a flat line. Every eye glanced at Jasper who wasn't moving. And like his wife he didn't look scared. He had died with a smile on his face.

Though he was happy the FBI agents could help but feel heavy with sadness of the old man. Someone who didn't deserve to die the way that he had. If Mr. Trahile would have been a live they were sure that he would have told him that "he was happy, and was ready die. He wasn't afraid."

They turned from the room as nurses flooded into it to try and revive the man that everyone knew wasn't coming back. They still had several other people to interview. They only hoped that those wouldn't end in death like the last had.


	5. Ghost in the Ruins

_**Authors Note:**__ Sorry that I kind of dropped off the face of the plant. School got really over whelming. But now I think I'm back for good and will try and get chapters out as fast as I can. I understand that this one isn't that good, but bare with me. They'll get better._

* * *

**Chapter 5**

**Ghost In The Ruins**

Kate Saunders stood in front of what was supposedly a movie theatre, though you couldn't see anything past the large tent that rose two stories in the air in front of it. It felt like a ghost town though she was standing in the middle of the street only a few blocks away from Times Square. It actually gave Kate shivers. This was not good. If it was bad enough to keep the stubborn New Yorkers from leaving their house then it had to be very bad.

Memories flashed through the twenty-one year olds mind of the last time that she had heard the city this quiet. The only thing that was different was that time it had actually been one of the loudest days of her life, filled with the screams of strangers as well as those that she loved. Cries and moaning from pain. But now whenever she thought back on it there was no sound. She could see the mouths of people moving, but never hear the words or sounds that came out. Though it was one of the realist moments in her life it still felt like it hadn't happened. Just like it felt like this wasn't happening.

Rossi and Emily stepped out of the SUV to join Kate in front of the white tent. They too felt out of place in the situation. No one knew what to do, or how to handle this. There was nothing they could do but try to stay strong and find the ones behind the attack before it was too late, and they all found themselves dead. Something told Emily that it wouldn't be long before that happened. What would they do if it did happen before they were able to find the cure? The only thing Emily could do to keep for going insane was push on, and try not to think about it. They needed to be clear headed, away from fear as much as possible to find the SOBs that had the nerve to do such a thing.

"Shall we?" Rossi asked motioning to the flap in the tent that served as a door. He too was knotted inside with fear. Actually he had never been so scared in his life. No case had been even been like this one. The danger threatening everyone in the world had never been so real. But he had trained himself over the years to not show the fear, or anger, he felt. His voice had come out as calm and collected as it always did. "We need to act quickly." He added, though everyone knew it. Knew that every second they spent standing there another person inched closer to death, and the UNSUBs came closer to another attack.

"Lets go." Emily said making her way through the flap, followed closely by Rossi. Kate chose to stay outside for a little while longer. Inside they found the tent looked pretty much like you would have expected it to. A few people sat in a pull out table in the middle of the room, with several other tables with while containment suites sitting on them. It seemed almost like a hospital in the smaller than expected space, and was so white that it made their eyes hurt.

"You must be the BAU team?" One of people at the table said standing, reviling that he was wearing a containment suite with out the helmet on. Kate slipped in next to the two agents at this point, trying to act like she had been there the whole time, though everyone in the room knew that she hadn't. Part of Emily wondered why she had stayed out a few extra seconds, but there was no time to try and figure it out. Whatever her reason it wasn't there problem. They had to focus on profiling the movie theatre. The man continued quickly before any of them could answer his question. "HASMAT has cleared the building, but for your protection we offer you containment suite, just in case. That is if you want one…"

Kate didn't even let the man finish before she was walking across the room toward a flap that was obviously the entrance to the movie theatre. She didn't even think twice about wearing one of the ridiculous suites. She didn't care if she was infected or not, anyway. After all the man had said the building was clear, and if he said it was clear then she trusted him. (Though in truth Kate trusted no one. It was a good excuse though if she was asked about it.) "Kate." She heard Rossi shout as she reached the flap, but she didn't even stop. Instead she continued through the flap and into the movie theatre.

"Damnit…."Rossi muttered when Kate disappeared through the flap. "What is she doing?" He knew that again it was none of his business what the CT agent did or not, but he wasn't about to see the young woman get herself infected and possible killed.

"I'll get her." Emily said and half ran to the flap and stepped through it. Not exactly would Rossi had been expecting. Now of course Emily was risking her own life. And what was even worse was Dave was sure this Kate wasn't going to listen to anyone. But what was he going to do? He wasn't about to run in after them, not with out a suite at least. There was no reason to get them all infected. So Rossi turned to one of the table and started to dress as fast as he could.

Kate hadn't gotten very far when Emily came into the lobby of the movie theatre. The smell of butter and popcorn a little over whelming after the too clean smell of the tent. "Kate!" Emily shouted, though the other woman didn't stop, or even look back. Emily continued forward until she was able to reach out and grab Kate by the shoulder stopping her.

"What!" Kate snapped turning around faster than humanly possible. Her eyes could have burnt a hole through Emily. Her heart was racing. She didn't like people touching her. Luckily the anger in her words most likely stopped the profiler from seeing the slightly panic in her eyes that only lasted a second, before it was replaced by the normal Kate stone cold glare.

"What are you doing?" Emily asked a little confused by the woman's behavior. Normally she could get a pretty good read on people, but there was something about this woman that kept her from learning much other than she wasn't much of a people person.

"Trying to find something that will help us catch these guys." Kate answered matter of fact. She really did hate stupid question, even if she knew that Emily had meant something else completely.

"Why aren't you wearing a suite?" Emily asked getting annoyed. "Do you want to die?" But even though she asked it didn't mean she believe it. Actually there was something about the way Kate was acting that told Emily she didn't want to die, but at the same time she didn't seem to care. There was defiantly something else going on with the girl.

"He said we didn't need one. I know this guys, if they say its safe, its safe." Kate answered. "Anyway, you don't seem to be to concerned." She motioned to the fact that she wasn't wearing a suite either. Though Kate wasn't a profiler she needed to be just as good with reading people as they had to be. When you were undercover you needed to know who and how you could trick different people, else you could be killed. "Do you want to die?" Of course Emily didn't seem like the person to want to die, but she sure wasn't worried about catching the virus from the building.

Luckily Emily didn't have to answer because Rossi came into the room seconds later. The suite russelling as he moved. In his hands he held two other suites, for the two other agents. "Here." He said holding them out for the girls, his voice muffled by the helmet.

Emily watched Kate for a moment, thinking about what she had said. And knowing that she was far smarter than she let on. She then turned to Rossi looking at the suite for a second. Kate was right. Emily didn't think they were in any danger. She felt like the man in the tent had just been told to keep them as safe as the could, because "they were the solution to this". She didn't like being treated differently than others. But at the same time she knew that she had to take the suite. Kate could think whatever she wanted to about her, but the only one she was going to go back to Quantico with was Rossi. "Thank You." She said taking the suite and starting to step into it.

"Kate?" Rossi offered the CT agent, wondering if Emily had convinced her to wear one. But as it turned out Kate shook her head and turned away, again not even considering putting the thing on. Sure if wasn't the fashion of the month but by the cloths the agent was wearing it didn't seem like she cared about that. Rossi wasn't going to force her into anything, though, and had actually decided that he didn't like her that much. "Fine." He muttered tossing the suite near the door to be returned to the tent when they came back.

Once Emily was dressed the three agents headed through the lobby and to the theatres. The virus had been released in the first screen. (It was a small place with only two screens.) Everyone from that screen had been admitted to the hospital. Along with a few of the staff members that had cleaned the theatre after the movie was over, and even a few of the people who saw the other movie, how they were infected was still a mystery, but the theory was they had gone to the bathroom with some of the infected people and some how when they washed their hands the virus had been transmitted.

The theatre looked just like any other theatre in the world. The floor was mostly clean, but crushed popcorn could still be seen imbedded in the carpet. There were only ten rows of seats, and there wasn't that much of a slant in the room. The three agents made there way into the room and looked around. Nothing seemed out of place. And nothing seemed important about the room. It had to be mean something to the UNSUB, that was the only option. Maybe it was one of the guys' first jobs, or had a bad date here. After all one thing the theatre was was old.

"He couldn't have been in the theatre when he released the virus." Rossi pointed out. They all understood that if he had been in the theatre he could have been at risk of getting infected himself, after all this was a very contagious virus, and any contact with it could cause you to get sick. This was starting to look like an inside job. How else would the terrorists have been able to turn the sprinklers on, with the infected water inside?

"We should have Garcia run background checks on everyone who worked for the theatre." Emily said looking up at the sprinklers above their head. The water had first dome out in small drops, Mr. Trihile having sat directly under one. Then they were turned on full power. Why it was this was, she didn't know. The UNSUBs could have wanted to make sure it would work. Or one of them could have been in the theatre at the time, and left before it came on full power. But that would be very risky. Why would they risk being infected to make sure it worked?

"Krys already did that." Kate said as she moved from row to row walking around casually. "All of them are clean." The CT team had thought of the fact that the theatre staff could very well be part of the terrorist plot, after all they did this kind of stuff every week. Sadly they had found nothing that shouted "terrorist"! "And before you ask, all the victims also check out." She added. Though everyone knew that if one of them did get infected they wouldn't go to the hospital. They would rather die then compromise the group.

"What if they fit the serial killer profile, and not the terrorist one?" Rossi pointed out. Of course they were pretty much the same thing, he figured that they should be safe and ask their analyst to look into them, see if she could flag something that someone used to only working with terrorist wouldn't see. It might prove useful. "I'll call her." He said ignoring the looks Kate got him. He didn't care if she thought that he thought his team was better than her's. As he dialed the number he left the room.

The room was silent a long moment as the two agents looked around the room. Both thinking. Emily soon broke the silence saying, "They must have a cure for the virus." Kate glanced at her, and Emily took the look as her questioning how she would know. Of course Kate didn't really care how the other woman had come up with that idea, but was always open to learn something new, and she felt she could learn a lot for these people. "There had to be one of them in this room. Why, I'm not sure. But the only reason they would put some one in that much danger was if they knew they could help him if the worst did happen." At least that was a silver lining to the situation. If they could find these guys then they could get the cure and help everyone that was sick. The only thing was they had to find them.

"What if they were making sure a certain person was infected." Kate offered still moved around the room. Unable to keep still. How could any one just stand around and do nothing but talk in a moment like this?

"Who?" Emily asked, though none of them had an answer. That was one more thing she would have to ask Garcia to try and find. But she wasn't going to say so out loud. Once Rossi came back in they looked around a little more. Even finding there way to the water system. But there wasn't much there to shed any light on the situation. Which was a shame. Emily had really wanted to find something that could lead them straight to the UNSUBs. Stop this madness as soon as possible.

* * *

JJ looked out at the sea of cameras. It was amazing just how dead the city seemed as they drove in, yet there were so many people ready to come out with cameras and tape records to hear what they had to say. As if it was safe to be at the front steps of the FBI building. Nowhere was safe though, However JJ knew that they needed to do there. Needed to get the information out to the public. Keep them in the loop on what was going on. The demand for knowledge on the situation had never been more needed then in this moment. And this was one of those moments that JJ agreed with what they did. The public needed to be aware and ready to act if something did happen.

JJ looked at Hayley Chezaneski next to her JJ wondered if this was how she felt ever time she had to stand in front of those cameras talking about a possible terrorist plot, or else trying to disclaim one. It was a different feeling then when you were talking about a serial killer. Everyone was a target in a terrorist act. While with psychopaths and sociopath there was a way to stop people from being a target. But there was very little they could now. Paired with the fact that they had to keep public from panicking JJ could tell why Chez had been so egger for her help.

"Agents!" Many from the crowd shouted and been shouting since the moment the two had walked out the building to give their statement, which they had been working on since the moment the BAU walked through the door. JJ knew the profile the team had come up with, and though it was a bad idea to release the details before the team had a chance to actually perfect the profile she knew that there were a few things she needed to get out.

"Everyone!" Chez shouted gaining to undivided attention of those from the crowd. Those who had known her as a kid would have been surprised that she was the one standing in front of the cameras talking to the world. She had always been quiet. But now she had found her voice. Something that had been taken from her at a very young age. Now she held on to it with her life, afraid that she would lose it again and become the helpless girl again who watching everything she cared about fade away. She would never let that happen again. She had total control of her life now. And even in times like these when she felt like the world was falling out beneath her she was able to keep that claim. It wasn't just her job it was her life.

"We are not confirming that this is a terrorist plot." Hayley said her voice strong even though she was partly lying. "It is an isolated incident where someone targeted the movie theatre, and those in side it."

"There is more than one person, yes. But they are not attacking the states, they are what we call cause driven offenders. Their attacking someone or something personally." JJ added smoothly, though her heart was fluttering because she knew that the vultures out there were ready to tare apart everything that they said.

"Does that mean the movie theatre was their target?" One of the reports shouted at the two media liaisons.

With out even thinking about which one of them should answer JJ said, "We can't be sure."

"Does that mean they are going to strike again?" A different report asked and JJ and Chez where starting to feel the pressure of the many people in front of them. They knew they their statement had been less than informative, but it was all that they could share.

"We don't know." JJ asked her voice faltering a little. She hated not having any of the answers that they needed. And that ended up being all the questions that the reports were asking.

Chez quickly stepped in saying, "If they are going to attack again the city is ready. We have all the best agents, and even those that aren't the best, on this case. We will hopefully find these guys before we have to worry about another attack. And if they do try again, we will be on them like peanut butter on bread." She said trying her hand at a little humor. She had learned that in times of crisis it was best to not be completely serious. It helped claim people down. If she could make a joke then it might not be as bad as they all thought it was. There could be some hope.

Of course that didn't seem to work this time. People were to over whelmed and shocked by the situation. There wasn't one chuckle from the crowd. And seconds later someone else was shouting out a question. One that neither JJ or Chez wanted to touch on. "How many people have died? And is there any cure in sight?"

The death toll was now sixteen. Hotch had called from the hospital to tell them that Jasper Trahile was dead. JJ gave Chez a quick glance then she looked back at the crowd. "Sixteen." She said flatly, trying not to draw to much attention to the growing number, "But things are looking up. The last person to die last far longer than anyone could have guessed. That means the doctors are doing something right, and in no time we will have a cure." JJ lied. She knew that they were no closer to finding a cure than before, and it was just chance that Trahile had lasted as long as he did, which she failed to mention to the media wasn't that long. But she knew that everyone needed to think that there was away to survive the virus if worst came to worse. An incurable virus was ten times more scary than one that could be fought.

"Thank you. That will be all." Hayley quickly said before anyone else could shout out a question to be answered. They had given all the information they could, and needed to get back to helping find the people that did this. Both woman turned and headed back into the building, maybe reports still shouting out questions as if they might get answered, but neither agent was going to go back to answer any more questions. That wouldn't do any good.


	6. Prelude to Madness

**Chapter 6**

Prelude To Madness

* * *

The eerie glow from the computer screen cast light on Krys Robin's face in the dark lair. All the lights were off making it far more luminous against her fair skin. Quite a few hours had passed since the initial gathering of various agents on her home turf of Counter Terror. Now everyone, aside from a few select data driven people and a handful of supervisors remained behind.

Penelope was in one of their many labs running her own operation while Spencer was stationed more so on the main floor. In fact, Krys hadn't seen either of them since their meeting on the main floor. Of course that was to be expected given the risk and severity of the situation, so everyone was naturally hard at work. But poor Krys had already been up for two days straight since the disaster began and her eyes were beginning to hurt and even droop. Even the eighty cans of Amp energy drink she forced herself to down wasn't exactly helping.

Her right hand kept a rhythmic click as she scrolled down every site she possibly could, navigating and hacking away. But soon the various fonts were turning into blurs and she couldn't even read them anymore. She had been informed that she could go home (as everyone was working in shifts) but what was the point? Going home to an empty apartment to sleep while others lay in hospital beds dying? That wasn't even an option; though Krys badly needed the rest her desire to help these people was stronger.

Her head began to drop and she rested her cheek in her right hand, her elbow on the edge of the desk. To keep herself awake she began to hum a Beatles tune to herself. But really, it wasn't helping. About halfway through 'Hard Days Night' her voice drifted off and there was quiet.

* * *

"Go For Garcia." Penelope Garcia answered her phone as brightly as she could, even though the situation was far from being bright. It was the only thing that was keeping her sane. She had been staring at the computer screen for a few hours now and she couldn't believe that she had gotten little to nowhere with her searching. This guys couldn't be this good. They had to have left some sort of evidence.

"Garcia." Rossi voice came over the other line. It was the normal Rossi voice, though Garcia did hear a hint of frustration hidden in the flat words. She wasn't going to pry though, after all everyone was stressed over the situation. "I need you to look into all the employs of the movie theatre."

"But sir, Krys already did that…" She said a little confused by his request. Had he not known that or was there something else going on.

His words proved that there was something else going on and they made her cring back. "I know, just do it." He wasn't in the mood to be questioned, even if he knew the data analysis had done nothing wrong and by snapping at her he most likely hurt her feelings.

"Okay. On it." She said quickly already starting to type. "Is there anything I'm looking for particular?" She asked the normal spark back in her voice.

"Anything that might connect them to the virus plot." Rossi told her. "Okay Do-kay. Back in a jiff." She said hanging up the phone and starting the numerous background checks. The movie theatre wasn't that big, but there were still quick a few workers and a lot of stuff to look into. She just hoped that this would shed some light on who had done this, and in time to save all those people.

* * *

Reid was working hard on the geographic profile. He placed all the points they knew about, even if some of them seemed irrelevant like where the victims lived or worked. JJ was off talking to the press at this moment. Reid suddenly knew exactly why they tried with all there might not to let things like this get out. People as far as California were panicking. Everyone thought it was the end of the world. That the virus would spread across the states and everyone would get sick and die. Reid was there to stop it. Once they found the UNSUB then they would have the cure (Emily and Rossi had called him an hour ago with that insight.).

Reid had learned little from the geographic profile as of yet, but there was still things he could do with it, stuff that no one else would have thought. However he had confirmed that there were at least two UNSUBs, there was no way he could have done all that by himself. And there was no more than five. Reid was also pretty sure that this was not a terrorist attack, but most importantly it was aimed at New York specifically. Whether it was the trail run or the main attack Reid wasn't to sure. There was still data that Reid could put in the map. He didn't have it, though. Reid could go to either Garcia or Krys, and even though Garcia was his teammate Reid figure that this would be a good time to wish Krys a happy birthday and maybe tell her about his present, since she wasn't going to be going home any time soon to see it. He still wanted it to be a surprise, though, but he also didn't want her to think that he didn't get her anything.

As Reid walked into the computer lab he said, "Hey Kry...' But stopped short when he noticed her head down. She was asleep. His words had caused her to shut her eyes even tighter. She wasn't asleep, persay, but she wasn't wake either. Even in this crisis Reid decided that she needed her sleep, she wasn't her best when she was tired. He turned to leave but ran into a side table, knocking off a few dozen cans of Amp to the floor, causing a very loud noise. If she had been asleep before, she wasn't now. Reid cringed at what he had done.

Krys seemed to deliberate opening her eyes in an inner battle with herself when the loud crashing of numerous Amp cans caused her to jolt upright, arms held up over her head in a tense, surrendering position. She had no idea what caused the loud sound but by this point she was reacting solely by instinct, no matter how silly it was.

"I'm up! I'm up!" She announced loudly in a shaky voice, her eyes now wide open though she had no idea what was going on. After a few heavy breaths, trying to get herself under control, she slowly peered over her shoulder just in time to see a rather worried and cringing Spencer Reid. Her eyebrow raised and her expression immediately softened as her arms slowly lowered back down. There was no danger here. She knew that for certain whenever Spencer was around.

"Spence?" She blinked a few times before she knocked herself right back into 'work habit'. She actually felt a bit embarassed for him having walked in on her closing her eyes, no matter how badly she needed rest (running on nothing but caffine the last few days). So, feeling quite cornered and out of her element she fumbled to her feet, nearly falling right over by doing so. "I was just... I really wasn't..." Oh gosh, any way she put it, it wouldn't sound right and so, she swallowed all excuses down into the deepest pits of her stomach. "Do you need something?" Hopefully Spencer wouldn't entirely hate her.

Reid kind of wished he could laugh at that moment with out making her feel like crap, but knew that he wouldn't be able to. So he just smiled lightly. "Sorry..." he muttered. She really seemed to need her rest, and based on all the Amp cans around she had been up several days. He decided that she understood this and still decided against sleep so there was nothing he could say to change her mind. He just hoped they could clear this up fast so she could get to bed. Leaning down Reid picked up the dozen cans on the floor and throw them in the trashcan that was over flowing.

"It's alright Spence." Krys offered with a gentle smile. Though she was tired she noticed the awkward, apologetic sort of look that he gave her. She felt a tickling in her upper chest upon noticing it and inwardly felt guilty for feeling such a way at Spencer Reid's own expense. But there was just something about it that made her feel... She wasn't sure. All she knew was that she wasn't sure if she liked it or not because she certainly didn't know what it was.

After a few moments of delay, becoming caught up in her own thought process, she blinked bringing herself back into the living world and somewhat startled, bumbled over her feet and began to help Spencer in picking up the cans. One by one she scooped them up into her arms, subconsciously counting them in her head to keep the other thoughts out. Particularly how much she had liked seeing the awkward expression on Spencer's face when he looked at her. What the heck was going on? She needed it to stop and fast.

Then he moved closer to her. Nervously fiddling with his hands. He didn't know why he was so nervous but he just was. Maybe he was afraid when he told her happy birthday and about her party and present she wouldn't like it. Biting his lip he answered her question, "Yeah, can you print me out where all the victim's live, I want to add them to the map, see if there might be a connection some how between that and the killers. If anything it will show us how far each person was willing to go. Or maybe it was a normal place they go to or..." He noticed her was rambling and stopped. Looking at the floor he bite his lip again nervously.

It was only when she saw Spencer's shoes right in front of her that she slowly looked up, a stupid, goofy smile upon her own lips. Oh god, what was going on? Must be the lack of sleep... "What is it Spence?" She questioned gently, her brown eyes then looking to his hands which he was currently wringing. Why was that? Her gaze moved back onto his face unsure of what he wanted to say. And apparently, what was causing him so much distress was a birthday wish.

After a short silence he looked up and said, "I also wanted to wish you a happy birthday..." He laughed slightly at the bad joke. Some happy birthday. All those people dying on it. It almost felt like a crime to say something like that on this day. "Well at least I'm happy it's your birthday..." he said awkwardly, but realizing how bad that sounded he added quickly, "I mean.. .well... I'm glad you were born... um..." he shifted his weight and avoided look at Krys. He wasn't sure what he sounded like by saying that but he was sure it wasn't that good.

"Me?" She blinked, caught a bit off guard by the fact that someone had actually remembered her birthday. "You remembered?" Krys was pretty hypocritical when it came to birthdays. Everyone else's mattered but hers did not. That was just her thought process having to do with her worth, something she could never quite shake because of her past. It had practically been beaten into her skull, quite literally. There were so many things she could have said but in the end she could only get out: "T-T-Thank you." Still a bit surprised as she clung the few empty cans of Amp to her chest.

There was another pause as Reid tried to figure out what else to say. "Well... I... Garcia... well she's going to be mad at me for telling you this... but I figure it doesn't much matter any more... But we had set up a surprise birthday party for you..." He looked at her a second then looked away afraid that she would be mad. "I know you didn't want a party… but well... Its Garcia... and everyone should have a party..." The news made her jaw drop. "A p-party? For me?" The young woman who was usually filled with words of various importance, for a moment actually seemed speechless. "You guys didn't need to do any of that." She suddenly murmured before moving to the garbage can and dumping in the cans with a few scattered clangs.

Pausing he looked at Krys and added, "I also got you a present even if you didn't want one..." The smile faded as he continued. "It's at your house now... but I figure you wont be going back there for a while... And I want you to have something happy to hear on your birthday." Reid paused a few moments trying to bring up the courage to tell her. It felt like such a stupid present now. "It's... it's a... um... arcade game... Donkey Kong... Just like the ones you see in the arcade... I figured since you liked playing it so much... well now you can play it went ever you want, and you don't have to pay..."

When she heard him laugh she couldn't help but smile to herself. She did really enjoy when he did that. For some reason it made her incredibly happy. Turning back to face Spencer her jaw dropped again upon news of the present that he had purchased for her. "You what?" She nearly tripped over her own two feet as she hurried toward him, her hands reaching up to brace herself against him. "Spence you did what?" Blinking she was now smiling like the excited, tired goof she was. "That's so awesome! Oh my god!" She was too tired to care if she sounded like a girly girl in her excitement.

Reid had been dreading Krys' response since the moment he decided that that was what he was going to buy her. Many times he talked himself out of doing it, then went back to the idea. Deep down he knew it was one of the best presents he could have thought of. And that Krys would love it even if it was pretty worthless. What scared him even more was that she didn't like parties and gifts. She hated when the attention was put on her and that was what he was doing. He was worried that the small gesture would make her feel bad, and even if she didn't say it he would still know. And he didn't want to cause her any kind of pain even with something as little as that.

But when she suddenly was speechless and her face glowed like a young kid at Christmas Reid knew he had made the right choose. His heart felt warm with delight and he felt like it was him that had gotten the gift and not Krys, and in a way he had. It was the young lady's joy, even if he didn't understand why it made him feel so happy. He didn't worry about that now though, he just took in all the sunlight he could get before he had to go back to the reality of what was happening. He wanted this moment to last forever.

Without warning she threw her arms around him in a hug. "That's so great. Oh my gosh!" Pulling away, though still holding onto him she looked right up at his face the happiness quite evident on her own tired features. "I've never had anyone do something like that for me." She confessed without worrying about how it sounded, she was far too touched by the gesture. "You're the greatest Spence."

When Krys embraced him for a huge he was shocked and almost shyed away. But in the end he didn't. It was a wonderful thing. He realized that he had hugged her a few times before, but never had she hugged back, she had acted like it was the worst thing in the world. But this was the really thing, she really meant what it was saying. And it made Reid feel even better that he was smiling like a loon looking down on the shorter women. Blushing slightly at her kind words he said, "It's nothing..." he knew that it must have meant the world to her, though. "I'm sure you would do the same for me." He really had nothing to say. He wasn't good at the whole being the center of attention thing either and when it was Krys looking at him he found that even harder.

Spencer looked up for just a second from the smiling, joyful face of Krys. But the one-second changed everything. It was the air vent just over all the computers, not three feet from them. Out of it was coming a grey white mist, almost like a fog. Reid's heart stopped as he suddenly knew what it was: the pathogen that was making everyone sick. His heart sank and he knew that if Krys stayed there she would get sick, and if she got sick then she might die, and he couldn't let that happen. The fastest he ever moved was in that moment when he turned around, hugging Krys closer to him, as to move her with him. Her now being closest to the door he pushed her, sending her out of the room, only hoping that it was only coming into this office and not in the hallway as well. Then he moved and shut the door.

With widened brown eyes in absolute shock and confusion she could only blink as she watched Spencer close the door right in her face. At first it didn't register. Her eyes could only dart back and forth in her confusion and her brow furrow with misunderstanding. It was only then that she saw the ominous gray just past his shoulder slinking its way into the room and her own heart sank and then proceeded to beat at a hamster's pace.

"Reid!" She yelled out, only to watch her friend begin to cough as he breathed in the pathogen and now alarm overtook her features and voice, accompanied by panic. "Spence!" Her voice cracked in her cry out to him as she hurried to the large windowpane that allowed people to peer into the lab when she was working. "What are you doing? Get out of there!" She smacked her hands against the plexi glass in retaliation, she was panicking, and not because of the dangerous virus in her lab. No, that she could handle. It was merely the man on the other side that worried her.

Reid didn't want to look at Krys. He didn't want her to look at him. He wished that the door had no window so she couldn't see him. He could hear the pain in her voice as she pleaded with him to get out of the room. He couldn't do that, though. If he opened the door than she would get infected to. It was too late anyway, he was already infected, no need to risk her life as well. At least he had gotten her out in time. At least one of them would live. And Reid was glade that it would be her. Controlling his coughing, afraid to scare Krys even more, he shook his head. "I can't do that." And he wouldn't until Krys was either in a biohazard suit or far away. This was the FBI. The CT unit, it was suppose to be safe! How could Reid know Krys would be safe if even here wasn't? The thought hurt.

"Spencer..." Her voice was soft, practically a pathetic whimper when she knew that he wouldn't be emerging any time soon. He was too stubborn for that. Worried brown eyes peered at the young genius as he coughed and she instantly felt sick, though it wasn't because of a pathogen in her body. She was worried sick over him and there was no hiding it from her features. "Please come out..." She felt like a little girl, pleading in a meek voice. "Please?" She knew it was too late, but a small part of her had to try even as she felt a wetness sting her eyes.

"Sound the alarm..." He said coughing, as he knew the poison was entering his body. He had gotten her out of the room just in time, he hoped at least. "Their flooding the air vents with the virus..." his voice was panicked. He looked around the small computer lab and felt sick to his stomach if he hadn't been there Krys would have been seating right under the vent, there would have been no chance of her getting away from it.

It took a moment for Krys to stop looking at Spencer in disbelief to register what he had said. Finally she gave a curt, short nod and fished her hand into her pocket for her phone. It took a few seconds longer than usual, as her right hand was shaking so badly from nerves and being upset. She had taken to pacing and murmuring little facts to herself in an attempt to keep some control, but it was control that she was quickly losing.

Finally she managed to get it open and called for a 'contamination team' and the ambulance that came with it. Spencer would be transferred into Quarantine when they finally arrived. As Krys called for back up Reid let his mind go. This situation felt kind of similar. It was almost the same thing that had happened before with the anthrax. Reid was starting to understand why Morgan was so protective over him. He did get into a lot of trouble. He didn't mean to, it just followed him around. And he was starting to get tired of it. There was only so much that could happen to a person. He still remembered that Krys was okay, and that was all that mattered to him at that moment.

Turning back to the windowpane her face wrinkled again with confusion and hurt. At first the words that she wanted to say became stuck in her throat, so out came the next few rather forced. "I'm mad at you." Hoarse as she pouted.

The words brought Reid back to reality. Biting his bottom lip he leaned against the glass window. Taking and big breath he looked out at Krys. She seemed so small and innocent at the moment. He hated that she was mad but he knew it had needed to be done. In a small voice barely loud enough to make it through the door he answered, "You should be."

Both of her hands pressed against the plexi glass, just looking at the man who she cared so much about. Her face looked pained just by looking at him. Like he was an animal behind a cage, an animal she wanted to save. It would be so easy just to reach for the door and open it. But then he'd be angry with her. She was sure of that and that wasn't something she wanted but she didn't want to be alone without him either. Didn't he understand that his life was far more important than hers? He was a genius! A good person! He wasn't worthless! She'd give anything to make him see, to make him understand, to just tell him...

"Please Reid..." She made one final, whispered plea. A foolish part of her still hoped that he'd open the door and let her back in. That maybe he'd change his mind and his genius brain would figure out a way to fix everything that was going on. He was brilliant, he really was. He could do such things, this she was sure of. Krys Robin truly looked upset, a strong contrast to the goofy, troublemaking little smile she often wore. Now, she looked as though her heart was deliberately tearing itself apart.

He wasn't even looking at her and this frustrated her. "Spence." She had raised her voice in an attempt to get him just to look at her. Maybe his eyes would betray him and through silence explain what was going on in that brilliant head of his. But no such luck. There was only sadness. Only confusion. "Why are you doing this?" She forced out in a strained voice that pained her throat just to utter.

He closed his eyes and waited for the ambulance to get there. In the back of his mind he wondered how many other people in the building were sick now? Had it just been a small attack that only made it to the rooms around this one, or was it larger. He hoped for the smaller attack.

When Krys saw Reid's eyes closed, though he was standing, a rush of unrelenting panic spread through her veins as her eyes widened. Her hands turned into fists and she loudly smacked them against the plexi glass. "Spence!" Her brown eyes sought out his. "Don't you dare." She glared at him, though it wasn't an ill fated one. It was one of panic and yet a determined one. She was not going to be left behind. She was not just going to watch as he slowly wilted into nothing. That was *not* going to happen. Not on her watch.

Reid jumped and quickly opened his eyes when Krys banged on the glass. Her eyes were wide with terror and he realized that she was scared. He felt a tear run down his cheek as he watched her, so afraid that he was going to die. "It's okay." He muttered. There was a long pause before he said anything. And when he did his voice was weak and all he wanted to do was cry. He hated to see Krys this way. "I'm sorry, I had to do it... I couldn't let you get sick... I just couldn't, and if that meant me getting sick then I was willing to take that risk." It was easy to think that his actions had been stupid. He knew she would never get over what he had done, the danger he had put his life in. He wasn't sure if she could get over himself for it either. He didn't know what to tell her. What could he say? That he was sorry? He wasn't. If the same thing happened again he would do the same thing. And he would do it a thousand times over.

Truth was he didn't know why had had done it. All he knew was that when he saw the gray fog coming he knew he had to do something to protect Krys. The ideal situation would have been if both of them had gotten out of the room. But Reid had known that that wasn't going to happen, so he chose the best next thing. Even if many people would say that he had more right to live just because he was a genius. It was one thing he disagreed at. There were many people that deserved to live more than him, and as far as he could see Krys was one of them. She was younger than he was by about five years and still had so much potential. Sure he was important, but he didn't believe that his life should be judge better than anyone else's. It was his decision in the first place. And if he was going to die he wanted to do so because he had decided that it was his time.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw JJ and Chez walked down the hall toward them. He automatically felt worried for both of them. Especially JJ. If Krys had reacted the way she had to him being infected then how would JJ react? After all he had only known Krys a month or so, which he had worked with JJ for years. He knew she would be crushed when she found out what was happening. His mind then wondered to Garcia. She was near by. Had she been infected also? He felt a lump in his throat at that thought. The team already had one person in danger they didn't need another.

Chez ran an exhausted hand through her hair before shuddering a deep sigh and gritting her teeth. The dark haired woman shook her head back and forth once or twice before regaining her composure, the composure that she kept in front of them all. She didn't like the lying, telling the public not to worry, that her team would have everything under control. In reality, she felt as if she herself were losing control, a tailspin that nobody could stop.

Yet, she shook those feelings away, banishing them in a corner as she made her way through the building where she'd worked for the past year and a half. In the time that she'd been there, she'd never seen it so crowded before: this virus threat was something bigger than anything her team had ever faced, and hopefully ever would face.

Hayley Chezaneski - Chez to those on her team - had held the latest press conference only ten minutes before with JJ, and was making her way back from that room towards where the rest of the team was. Both woman felt unsatisfied by the conference, knowing that they had left more questions than answers. But what were they to do. They just had to keep going and try not and worry about the lies and questions left unanswered.

The throngs of people would have bothered Chez when she was younger, especially the overwhelming amount of men - but she'd gotten used to it, it was tolerable for her now. The outright fear that her father had instilled so long ago had been shoved down, replaced by a certain amount of uncomfortable ness that she'd managed quite well. After all, after a year and a half, nobody on her team knew about her past. And she was determined to keep it that way. The twenty five year old continued down the hall closely followed by JJ.

Down the hall, she caught the eye of Krys Robin, the team's technical analyst, and a young man that was standing behind her closed office door.. It was someone that she recognized, because Krys had talked about him quite frequently. Chez was a good listener, and always had been - good at talking things out of people, too. It was her own inner workings that she kept secret, guarded with something akin to the Great Wall of China. She recognized the man as Spencer Reid.

Hayley tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and braced her nerves. She wasn't as comfortable with Reid as she was with Matt or Jack. The entire BAU was here somewhere, out trying to save the day. At first she didn't catch the panic that was on Krys' face, she was to far away to see that she was crying. In fact it was JJ who first noticed that something was up and began to run down the hall way stopped five feet from the door when she noticed what was going on. She glanced at Chez, who had taken a spot next to her, also frozen from surprise.

Panic raced through JJ as she looked at her friend behind the plexi glass. How had this happened? How could this happen? Wasn't anywhere safe any more? Spencer made eye contact with her, telling with his stare that he was okay, even though they both knew he wasn't. She ahd to make sure Garcia was okay. Get her out before anything did happen to her. Then they both had to get out. If the virus did spread through out the rest of the building they would be endanger, and they couldn't let that happen. JJ know what he wanted. But she didn't want to go. How could see leave him? Tears welled up in her eyes as she looked at him. She shock her head no, but he just stared harder. There was nothing she could do for him now. She knew that. She could help Garcia though.

She closed her eyes, trying to fight back the tears deciding that he was right. Taking a deep breath she looked up at him and tried to smile, give him that at least. Then she said in a voice that was riddled with fear and sadness. "I'll see you soon. Okay. Spence?" She said take one more long look before she half ran down the hallway in the direction Garcia was in.

Krys quickly glance over at the sound of JJ's voice. She hadn't even heard the two women come up. Krys tuned it out however for she was too busy worrying about her dearest friend. But all at once the realization came flooding back and she looked over her shoulder at Hayley. "It came through the vent up there." She pointed against the glass. "He pushed me out but locked himself in. He's so... STUPID." She turned around and glared right at her friend, not to be cruel but she just didn't understand why he had to do that.

If Chez had thought that the area before had been hectic, it was a highway of traffic now - bustling people, on their phones, calling the HazMat team ... why did Krys' Reid have to be the one to be infected? The more people that entered the room, the more that her skin crawled. She was used to large crowds, yes, but the large crowds she was used to didn't normally push her or come in contact with her. She took a deep breath through her nose and stepped forward towards the CT's technical analyst.

The woman was pounding on the glass, her eyes watering - like Chez, Krys wasn't one to cry, at least not in front of others. "Krys, back up. There's nothing you can do." It was a familiar situation to her - being powerless, and she didn't like it. She shoved the vulnerability back inside her as Krys began to tell her what had happened. Hayley's throat closed painfully.

"He's a guy, Krys. Most guys are stupid." The words felt stupid once they'd left her mouth. The kind of stupid that she spoke of wasn't one that she would be familiar with, never having even been out on a date. It was hard to be on a date when you were as wary around men - or, as she had once been, downright fearful - as she was. It was only pushed back now because of years of practice.

"He can't get sick. He just can't. We have to help him." Turning back to Hayley she could hear the paramedics come rushing down the hall as an alarm sounded. They were all in contamination suits and were yelling for everyone to evacuate. Krys once again tuned it out. "He can't. He's my best friend." Something was stinging her eyes. Was it tears? No, certainly Krys Robin didn't cry. Now a man was pulling Hayley away, trying to get her to leave, one reached for Krys but she turned back to the glass instantly worried over Spencer's state.

"Look at me Spence! Come on." Her breath was rushed and she glanced around nervously desperate for something to help, but she could only come up with one thing. "Did you know that a peanut is not actually a nut? It's a legume." She informed him, just as a larger man's hand found her shoulder and she could only stare blankly at Spencer, her eyes filled with worry and pain. More than she had ever felt, she was certain, and that was saying a lot. "Spence..."

"KRYS. There's nothing we can do. You can't go in there, and neither can I. /Now/, Krys, before I bodily drag you from this door. I'm strong enough to do it." There were many versions of Hayley - the one that she showed to the media and to most strangers, the one that was calm and calculated, resourceful, her media face. There was the one that she showed nobody - the vulnerable one, the part of her that she wished had died back in that basement. There was the version she showed to people who got in her way - a coiled spring, don't mess with me.

And then there was the version that she put on now, the one that she showed most of the time. It was the one that was guarded, her innermost demons never in the public eye, it was the one that was sarcastic and witty, and protective of friends, the one that made her team think she was super woman, as she'd told JJ only moments before. That was the version she showed now.

"No!" Her head snapped around and for once there was a frightening glare to her. She did not want to budge. She did not want to leave him and she'd duke it out and lose if she had to. "I can't leave him alone!" She practically yelled as the men were now forcibly grabbing them, she managed to weasel out of grasp again. Pleading with Hayley, praying that she would understand. Out of everyone on the CT team her and Jack were the most relatable. They understood feelings. They had to.

"Krys, they can't get to him if we don't move." She could see the look on Reid's face - it was intensly familiar. It was the same exact look she'd seen on her brother Ryan's face as he'd slowly died from influenza. Protective.

A man's hand pulling her away startled her, making her jump, and she cursed out loud, wishing she hadn't shown weakness like that. Let the behavioral analysis in that room chalk it up to her being high strong at the moment, she hoped. "Get your hands off of me or I swear I'll have someone on you like fur on a dog. I'm moving." Hayley said, attempting to drag Krys with her. "Now, Robin."

"We can't just leave him." She forced out again as she maneuvered toward the door and the plexi glass pane, her hands moving to rest their, quite tense. She hated that she couldn't think clearly. Her thoughts weren't processing correctly. She could barely even form words as she stared at him and her eyes were wet and yet no tears fell. She wasn't a big crier, but this was bringing her to the point of it though it didn't exactly happen. "I can't leave you alone." Krys would never do that to a friend. Especially Spencer Reid. People needed people. Plain and simple. She didn't want to turn him over to people in terrifying bodysuits who he didn't know. Who would poke and prod him, though really they were just trying to help.

Reid tired not to lose control as he watched Krys fight with Chez and then the men in suits. She didn't want to live, and he understood that. She needed to know that Reid was okay. He would have done the same thing, but he didn't like it. He wanted Krys gone, somewhere safe. Out of New York if it was even possible. She couldn't be around any more. He didn't want to watch him die. He couldn't put her through that. But he also wanted her to be there. She was his security blanket. She knew what to say and when to say it, even if she didn't know it. Just seeing her made Reid feel better. It was a conflict in emotions that was driving Reid crazy.

"It's not okay." She managed to get out softly, her own voice barely holding on as she saw a tear slide down Spencer's cheek. Her heart broke and she felt sick all over again. "It's not okay at all." Her bottom lip quivered with the threat of a sob. Not even realizing it she lifted her hand to wipe his tear, only to come into contact with cool plexi glass. Her hand initially stiffened and then flattened, as if trying to touch him but to no avail.

Turning back to Krys he noticed she was trying to get as close to him as she could. Lightly he placed he's hand on the glass almost like the two hands were touching. He wished he could feel her now, her soft skin. Pushing that thought away he could tell that she didn't want to go even more. The men in the suits came up and grabbed her, and she freaked out. The sight burnt a hole through Reid.

Her body now felt shakey and her voice came out only in a whimper. "Don't lie to me Spence." She shook her head as she removed her hand from the glass. "It's not going to be okay. I know it's not. I may not be a genius but I know that much." She couldn't even wipe at her face for soon one of the larger man had no choice but to forcibly grab her in an attempt to escort her out.

Most people would have been intimidated and left. But not Krys. Shocked by this touch, let alone by a much larger man she instantly went into panic mode. She was quite hypocritical in that sense, alright when she touched someone but when they touched her first she tended to freak out. Right now, mixed in with the stress, was an explosive combination. The very look of fear spread over her features and her whole body tensed as she cried out, cringing. "No!" But the man's arms was practically around her. Flashes of her father darted across closed eyes.

"Let go! Let go!" She squirmed a bit, even kicked her body out but the man was too strong and was set on getting her out of the building. But Krys was scared not only because of the touch but for Spencer who she knew was right in front of her even though her eyes were closed. Her hands tried to pry the man's arms off of her, her breathing becoming shallow but his grasp was too firm.

He hit the glass a few times, trying to get her attention, knowing that she was having a panic attack because of the touch. "Krys!" He shouted. "Krys, it's okay!" Finally she just gave into the panic and ran her hands repeatedly through her brown hair. "Dogs hate walking backwards. Color is the refraction of light. Killer Whales are actually dolphins." Fact after fact came from the overwhelmed data analyst as she tried to tune everything out. It was all she knew how to do. And she was worthless.

Krys didn't know much in this moment of extreme emotional stress but she did know one thing and that was that she wanted Spencer Reid out of that room! She wanted him safe, even if that meant that she had to wrap her arms around him and hold onto the young genius for dear life... And quite literally! What if something worse happened to him? What if he died? She'd never be able to see him again! She'd never be able to make him smile, or laugh, or make him try new things. It had become a part of the routine that was her life and it wasn't something that she wanted to lose.

Brown eyes darted across the floor in the struggle. She just wanted Spencer to be safe, to be okay. And yet feet and plexi glass separated them. It felt like worlds away and she absolutely hated it. It made her nervous. It made her upset. Her fingers tried to pry at the arms around her with a loud grunt but with no success. She wanted to make a dash for her best friend. To somehow magically press the button and get inside, but that was no longer a possibility. The panic continued to set in. What if she never saw him again? This thought kept torturing her mind and her brown eyes darted up to look at Spencer.

"I can't go." She whimpered quietly, her eyes meeting Spencer's even with the distance between them. She appeared absolutely destroyed, as though if someone so much as poked her she would have crumpled to the ground. She was nearly begging him, for his permission that would make it okay to stay though she knew it was futile. She would have to go. She would have to leave him. "I don't want to leave you.." She managed to get out, so quietly that maybe Spencer hadn't heard it. Her hands squeezed the man's arms that was around her but she was blatantly ignoring him, her gaze so focused on her ill fated best friend.

"Krys, you have to go with them. Please. If you get sick too then this would have been for nothing." He said referring to him getting sick. He had done it to save her, so she couldn't get sick also.

The data analyst stared blankly at him. Blinking back tears. He was right. Of course he was right. He was a genius. The boy wonder. He knew everything. But that didn't mean that she had to like it. Swallowing she allowed the man to guide her away, though her head turned to look at Spencer the entire way, seemingly hesitant and pained by this decision.

"It's not okay. It's not okay at all." She confessed quietly before finally she was led out of sight.


End file.
